Berkeley's Phantasmagoria: The Dangerous Haven

[Hello Purvis]

>That wouldn't be the weirdest thing today.
>"Something warm and filling would be nice, Miss...?"

[Serela]

>That wouldn't be the weirdest thing today.
>"Something warm and filling would be nice, Miss...?"

>Certainly not. She's making more sense then anything else you've seen so far, at least.
>You hear from behind the door, "Ah, I believe this shall do.", before the old lady comes back out, and sits down in her chair again.
>You feel like you missed something, just now.

[Hello Purvis]

>Look around for possible foodstuffs that may have manifested out of the aether.

[Serela]

>Look around for possible foodstuffs that may have manifested out of the aether.

>It doesn't take much looking; behind you, on the table, is a tall glass of water next to a plate of hot pancakes with syrup and butter!
>If you weren't dehydrated right now, you'd be drooling.

[Hello Purvis]

>Get that water!
>After drinking a bit, pause.
>"...I forgot my manners, sorry. Is it alright if I have this?"

[Serela]

>Get that water!
>After drinking a bit, pause.
>"...I forgot my manners, sorry. Is it alright if I have this?"

>You grab the glass of water hungrily, gulping down a good bit of it before pausing for air.
>The old lady chuckles. "But of course!"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Thank you very much!"
>Dig in.
>"May I ask your name? Or...how you made this appear?"

[Serela]

>"Thank you very much!"
>Dig in.
>"May I ask your name? Or...how you made this appear?"

>"You're quite welcome!"
>You begin to eat the pancakes and OOOOH FOOOOD it's incredible
>After you've eaten your fill, you ask the old lady some questions. "I'm... well, hmm. What's that word, again...? I can't quite remember. I believe my name has become a word whose meaning is the opposite of Physics. Darn words, there's too many of them."
>"As for the food, I created it; don't worry, it's no trouble for me."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Magic? Or Emotion?"

[MysTeariousYukari]

> "Not to sound rude or to offend, but did you forget your name?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "Not to sound rude or to offend, but did you forget your name?"

>add in, "As well?"

[Serela]

>"Magic? Or Emotion?"

>She frowns. "I don't think that was it. Maybe I'll never remember... ah well, no matter." She sighs.
>

> "Not to sound rude or to offend, but did you forget your name?"

>add in, "As well?"

>"I haven't exactly used it recently. It's only a few times that I've had contact with another living being in the past 5 billion or so years, dear; I suppose I've just forgotten it as the time passes me by..."

[Hello Purvis]

>Pause, collect thoughts.
>"No one ever comes here? That lady's place is only a day from here. Then again..."
>"What is this place, anyways? It's not actually a part of that flower field, right?"

[Serela]

>Pause, collect thoughts.
>"No one ever comes here? That lady's place is only a day from here. Then again..."
>"What is this place, anyways? It's not actually a part of that flower field, right?"

>You pause, collecting your thoughts.
>After you completely finish speaking, she responds. "This place is... well, it's the dimension where nothing else exists. It's an alternate reality, one might say. The other reality is Universe. Maybe 20 or so years ago, however, a new Goddess appeared here and began a new world... I suppose you're from there? Although, I can't imagine something good is happening if my house has appeared in a flower field."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Huh. So there's three realities now? Or is that new world just a part of Universe? And, it's right outside the door. Or, at least, it was for me when I came here... It was just a misty spot in the middle of a flower field."

[Serela]

>"Huh. So there's three realities now? Or is that new world just a part of Universe? And, it's right outside the door. Or, at least, it was for me when I came here... It was just a misty spot in the middle of a flower field."

>She signs. "I suppose I better explain."
>"I'm not going to go all the way back to the start, because... augh, that's just a bother. But quite a long time ago, there was just a lot of gods and goddesses who did as they wished, creating and uncreating whenever and wherever... it was quite unorderly. So, a god named Physics proposed to make a set of rules to control things. His idea gained so much support, he was able to garner the power to make it happen; and hence, the Universe was created in the Big Bang, a reality bound by the Laws of Physics."
>"All the gods and goddesses left for Universe, but I thought at least one person should stay behind; naturally, I was the only one who could resist going to Universe, and so here I am. And I've been isolated for such a long time in an empty void... until 20 years ago, when a newborn goddess suddenly arrived here. Her small world is the one thing in this void."
>"To summarize; there's two realities, Universe, and... well, here. The newborn Goddess' world is inside "here", just as gods and goddesses have their own worlds inside Universe. I suppose you might also count the transdimensional space between the two realities, as well. It's okay if you don't understand all of this; I realize it may be quite a lot to take in at once."
>"As for my house being in this flower field... a part of the new Goddess' world must have faded away. That would indicate something bad having happened to the Goddess; her faith running low, or her physical being having been damaged, for example."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Oh. That is a lot to take in."
>Take a moment to sort it all out. "That's a problem, I suppose. And you can't leave here at all? Even if you wanted to?"

[Serela]

>"Oh. That is a lot to take in."
>Take a moment to sort it all out. "That's a problem, I suppose. And you can't leave here at all? Even if you wanted to?"

>She nods sagely in response.
>It takes a minute for you to get a good hold on this... on the upside, how many people who aren't a God/Goddess actually get to know this stuff?
>"Oh, I could leave. But... I felt like I should keep the original reality intact. There's nothing here; if everyone left, who's to say we could ever get back? And now that there's finally a world here, it's not as bad as it used to be. Although I have to wonder about the story behind this new goddess; new ones are not made often, and her being sent here as a baby is certainly not normal."

[Hello Purvis]

>"That does sound weird. Tell me more, please?"

[Serela]

>"That does sound weird. Tell me more, please?"

>She begins rubbing her chin in thought. "Hmm... one day, she simply came in through the portal from the transdimensional space. She was just a little baby. I wasn't sure what to think; so I avoided her, and watched. As the years passed, she began to control her powers of creation, and made a little world for herself... I haven't payed a terribly large amount of attention to it, I'm afraid, but I do check in on it now and then. I still have no idea from where, and why, that she was sent here."

[Hello Purvis]

>Ponder what we can recall about religion. Do divinities tend to have children?
>If we don't know for sure, ask about it.

[Serela]

>Ponder what we can recall about religion. Do divinities tend to have children?
>If we don't know for sure, ask about it.

>You cannot recall what you know about religion! Darn.
>So you ask, instead. "Well... they can. That isn't to say they all enjoy doing so. Often, their creations are like their children, and they don't wish anything more. But yes; they can have god-children with each other, or, on a rare occasion, by blessing one of their own creations with the powers of a god."

[Hello Purvis]

>Nod. "I didn't know that. So, you're a god too, right? Could you fix my memories?"

[Serela]

>Nod. "I didn't know that. So, you're a god too, right? Could you fix my memories?"

>She grins. "Your smarts haven't gone with your memories, eh? Although, I did pretty much spell that out. As for your memories... well, that depends on why they're gone. Let me have a look see..."
>Suddenly, the old lady sits up straight in her chair and begins to stare at you. Intensely. It's a bit disturbing; it feels like she's staring into your soul.
>After a minute, she slumps back into the rocking chair again. "Oh dear. I do believe you've lost your soul; how queer."
>...you aren't sure how to respond to that. But you suppose this means she wasn't staring into your soul a moment ago, since it isn't there.

[Hello Purvis]

>"...That doesn't sound healthy at all. Um, is there any way I could get it back? And, um, could you help with it? I'm sorry to keep making demands of you, but, well, you can understand that I'm at the end of my rope. You're the first friendly person I've even met."

[Serela]

>"...That doesn't sound healthy at all. Um, is there any way I could get it back? And, um, could you help with it? I'm sorry to keep making demands of you, but, well, you can understand that I'm at the end of my rope. You're the first friendly person I've even met."

>"It's not quite as unhealthy as it sounds; your mind doesn't seem to have been damaged in the process. It would still be in your best interests to retrieve it though, dear. I'm afraid I don't know if I can help with that; you see, you'll have to find your lost soul in order to get it back."
>"I can, however, offer you any kind of item that you may find useful on your quest; as well as my house as a safe place to return to. You'll always be welcome here."

[Hello Purvis]

>Ask her to conjure a Candy Mecha fuck year
>"Well. I have a reasonable idea of who took it. And, she's dangerous. I don't know how she's dangerous, but she is. Really really dangerous. And she has a small army. Maybe a big army.  If you could give me some things to deal with that, that'd be really useful. Or a way to move around without being detected."

[Serela]

>Ask her to conjure a Candy Mecha fuck year
>"Well. I have a reasonable idea of who took it. And, she's dangerous. I don't know how she's dangerous, but she is. Really really dangerous. And she has a small army. Maybe a big army.  If you could give me some things to deal with that, that'd be really useful. Or a way to move around without being detected."

>EXTREEEEEME
>She frowns. "Oh my, you've gotten yourself into something big, haven't you? Trying to take something from someone like that might be a bit too much for you, dear. I understand your soul is an important thing, but your life itself is moreso. You don't even know what she's done with it; where it would be now, do you?"
>She shakes her head. "I'll help you, but I don't approve of something so dangerous. First off, I'll give you a charm that will return you here in an emergency; just behind you, a stiff fabric embedded with magic to send you back here whenever it becomes ripped."

[Hello Purvis]

>"I suppose that's a good point. Um...would there be any way for me to find out what happened to my soul, aside from actually finding it?"
>Look for that charm.

[Serela]

>"I suppose that's a good point. Um...would there be any way for me to find out what happened to my soul, aside from actually finding it?"
>Look for that charm.

>"Hmm... I've heard of making a compass to a lost soul. I'm afraid I don't know the art of making one. You should seek someone knowledgeable in faith or spirits, if you want to pursue that."
>It's right behind you, on the table. You don't feel particularly secure with objects just appearing around you like that.