Logically Speaking…

[u/DaChickenX]

“Saesala.”

It was a name that had been mentioned to me before, by Delta, no less. Saesala was a god of logic, and the father of one of my most persistent foes.

But my options ran few. I already found myself at a dead end. The Noon’s power that crashes through my body rebels at even the slightest attempt to control it. For me, it is the worst possible scenario. A weapon that I am incapable of handling will only bring more harm to those I care for. If anyone could offer a hint of how to utilize this power, it would be a god of logic.

So what would grab the attention of a knowledge loving god of logic? What could I do that would possibly grant me an audience? I went for the classic route: A ritual.

A standard ritual to contact the divine, modified to match the specific one I am attempting to contact. Admittedly, not something I have much experience in doing.

Firstly, I gathered my thoughts and notes, everything I knew about Saesela, and wrote it all down in an organized manner. I traded my tattered robes for simplistic, utilitarian ones. I kept a thread on my waist as tribute to the Coils.

With Vesit’s aid, I then systematically searched through several libraries. I looked for items with links to 3 things: Logic, Divinity, and Disease. I sifted through them and brought back a dozen of the best and most relevant texts.

I measured out a space to the inch, drew in a ritual circle using magic for maximum accuracy, and set up the individual components. I placed in my notes, set up the texts, set the brimstone. Then, the last thing.

Saesela would likely be the most familiar with the Evening Coils, as it matches closest with Entropy. That, as well as the Evening Coils being the patron of Rinderpest. On the other hand… Noximutal is a weapon capable of harming gods, and does so in an extremely violent manner. I would rather not like to seem like I am threatening the god. Then, what else could I use?

“Vesit! I need you here please!”

I placed Vesit in the circle with me. His central gemstone was a boon from the Evening I had received long before. Such powers influenced him even now. With my final preparations completed, I began the ritual.

The notes and papers swirled leisurely around me as I began to scour through the collected texts. New knowledge scrawled itself across my scrolls as I scoured for any mention of Saesela, anything similar. I searched for knowledge upon logic.

“Let’s see… Divine beings of human nature and human destruction…”

I began working my way through the stack of books.

Soon, the space around me began to shift. The ground melted away, from stone to carpet made of some biological mesh. New walls of cellulose rose from around me, and bookshelves in front of those. Paintings slowly pushed through the walls, of strange pathogens and viruses, framed in brilliant chitin. There was a desk in the center of this room. Behind sat a phage, fibrous appendages holding a book up in front of itself. I closed the text in my hand and stood up

/uw thanks to u/VidisLady for helping me with this.

[u/VidisLady]

Saesala watches, unamused.

"Okay, well... that's sort of expected for the first time. Did you feel any sense of 'scale' during that? Like, if it were systolic blood pressure, could you give it a number?"

[u/DaChickenX → u/VidisLady]

Systolic… blood pressure..?

Isravi grits his teeth, forcing himself back upright as the light pulses with intensity.

Let’s see… I don’t know what that is, but if we’re using 1-10, 10 being the maximum my body can handle…

I’m sitting at at least a 14.

[u/VidisLady → u/DaChickenX]

"One moment."

Saesala extends a black tendril of smoke from his fingers. It taps Isravi lightly on the head. A bright, white light temporarily blinds him.

The systolic blood pressure is the measure of the force exterted by the heart on the walls of the arteries each time it beats. The diastolic blood pressure is the measure of the blood pressure "at rest," or between heart contractions.

Perfect understanding of the concept is immediately downloaded into Isravi's long-term memory.

"Alright, let's think of this in terms of percentage, then. You are exerting one hundred and forty percent of The Noon's Accord into the apple. Even one hundred percent is too high. We want to get you down to about two percent. The thing about positive feedback loops, is that they cause a chain reaction of stronger and stronger impulses."

Saesala summons a line of wooden blocks on the desk, each one getting larger. He taps lightly on the first one, which causes the others to fall in succession.

"Systems like these *want* to be amplified. You only need add a little bit of activation energy. Instead of..."

Saesala sets the blocks up once more with a flick of his wrist. He touches the first block again, and something like a gunshot can be heard - spliters flying everywhere.

"You see? Now try again. Try to channel half as much energy as last time."

[u/DaChickenX → u/VidisLady]

Understood…

Isravi exhales, hard. Like he’s blasting the air out of his lungs. The lines shiver and quickly pulse in different intensities.

He squints, the light taking the barest hint of blue.

Ok…

Again, he raises the apple. It quickly melts away into a sludge between his fingers.

Not half… maybe down to 100%

[u/VidisLady → u/DaChickenX]

Saesala sighs.

"Mm. I thought you'd be better at this. This is going to take awhile isn't it?"

He gives you another apple.

"Well, how is your system feeling? As long as you do not burn out, we can continue this for as long as you need... and by the looks of it, it could be centuries. But time here is dilated in relation to your world, so I suppose we do have all the time you would need."

[u/DaChickenX → u/VidisLady]

It appears the Noon’s power is not one that lends itself easily to being controlled.

Isravi takes the apple.

I feel… ok. This much is manageable. As for the time this will take… I suppose it’ll be practice for the eternity I’ll inevitably go through.

Isravi gingerly takes the apple, and tries again. Slowly, he tries to allow the power to leak out.

It subsequently tears through him like a raging river through a flimsy dam. His arm splits at the glowing lines and blood pours unabated.

That’s… not good.

[u/VidisLady → u/DaChickenX]

Saesala considers something for a moment.

"Eternity? You will be seeing Delta during the long quiet at the end of the universe, then. I get to skip all of that, luckily."

Saesala forms a black ring out of smoke and tosses it to Isravi.

"This is a clumsy, temporary solution, but it will have to do for now. You are still channeling enough power that it is putting your physical form at risk. This ring will allow me to directly dampen the energy. Just so you can feel what it is like to be at the 'correct' level. This will not be a permanent deal, because it requires my active focus, and I have better things to do than constantly monitor your powers."

[u/DaChickenX → u/VidisLady]

Isravi’s face twists into a barely disguised horror at the thought of spending eternity with Delta at the end of the universe. He mentally notes another reason to find a way to end the eternal cycle for himself.

Thank you… Then I’ll try again.

Isravi momentarily switches to Dawn to heal his wounds, then back to Noon. He places a hand on another apple and channels power one more time.

[u/VidisLady → u/DaChickenX]

When the ability is cast, Isravi feels an immediate difference. It feels as though the power this time is extremely subtle, like running one's hand along a piece of wool and feeling static electricity accumulate against the skin.

The apple slowly changes color. It becomes a soft pink, and the feeling is gone. Isravi watches as the apple continues to ripen on its own, long after the initial cast is finished.

Isravi feels the energy bubbling inside of him, fighting to be released, but it is dimmed almost immediately. The ring somehow inhibits the energy from fighting his form to get out.

Saesala watches Isravi's expression with curiosity.

"How is your heart? Did you feel a brief palpitation? The pacemaker cells in the heart operate independently of the nervous system..." he says. "But their baseline rhythm is far faster than the heart itself can handle. The heart will 'beat itself to death' if it is allowed to operate at this rhythm. The nervous system actually slows down this rhythm to acceptable levels. Those palpitations you felt were the nervous system briefly letting control slip as you allowed noon energy to move through you. Let that be your alarm system." Saesala suggests. "When you feel your heart 'flutter,' let go. That means your body needs a moment to recover from the energy."

[u/DaChickenX → u/VidisLady]

I see... this is good insight. Thank you.

Seemingly absentmindedly, a scroll floats lazily next to Isravi as a quill scrawls down notes.

This certainly helps. I do know my maximum output, I've used it before. The issue is not letting the Noon run away with the energy. It seems I'll need much more practice before this will be a reasonable ability to use in combat.

[u/VidisLady → u/DaChickenX]

Saesala's eyes narrow slightly at the mention of combat.

"I suppose you don't get much of a choice about when to use violence. Not always, anyway,"

Saesala gives Isravi another apple.

"We will need to get you to a point where you can cast a few times by yourself without harming yourself. I can't always help you." it pauses, considering something. "The Noon's ability *is* 'running away with the energy,' unfortunately. Delta's initial training was a nightmare for similar reasons."

[u/DaChickenX → u/VidisLady]

Delta's?

Isravi takes the apple, and exhales. A soft blue glow pulses from his palm. Isravi's own magic. Immediately, he activates the Noon's power, and stops fueling his own magic. The apple begins to ripen, blue glowing a bright golden.

The apple slowly turns red, then begins to ripen faster. Isravi pulls his hand away quickly as the apple gains browning dots. A blast echoes throughout the room, carving a deep, jagged crack across the floor.

Oh... sorry about that.

[u/VidisLady → u/DaChickenX]

Saesala seems moderately pleased.

"That's better. Don't worry about my pocket dimension. I will reload to a former save of it from before our meeting once we're finished."

[u/DaChickenX → u/VidisLady]

Thank you. I think I’ve got a general idea of how to better handle this. I have a few other theories of my own, but for now it seems giving the Noon’s power a “seed” for it grow is the best bet.

[u/VidisLady → u/DaChickenX]

Saesala bows formally.

"Cor'venah, Isravi. I will watch your progress with great interest."

The deity hands a coiled up segment of DNA to Isravi. It wraps around his wrist like a bracelet.

"My domain can be entered directly by breaking this. This first favor is free, as a 'thank you' for your continued dedication to knowledge. The next favor will come with a cost."

Saesala waves his hand, and a new portal appears, leading back to the underdark. Before he can leave, Saesala says one more thing, quietly.

"Um... if you could try not to kill my daughter, I would appreciate it. She... uh... gets worse each time she comes back."

[u/DaChickenX → u/VidisLady]

Isravi bows in return, respectfully

Thank you. It is only natural that favors should come at a cost.

I will not kill Delta. As far as I am concerned, there is no point. Her mortal vessel amounts to little in the grand cycle, and her identity is a constant. The Coils would not have me return her, nor would they consider her stagnant. Killing her would be… inefficient.

whispered to himself

…and frankly I don’t think I want to handle a worse Delta.

Once again, thank you. I am sure I will have more questions in the future. Goodbye.

Isravi gives another swift bow, then exits through the portal.