Setting things up took a little bit more effort and time than Klaus might have wanted, but he could be patient, oh yes he could. He could not afford to flub this, after all. Lady Gillespie was a cunning and ruthless foe, and Klaus was very cognizant of the fact that a misstep would likely get him killed on the spot. However, he was well used to high stakes in his craft. Honestly speaking, if he was sure that his goal would be achieved, he would be entirely content to die in the process. After all, his next iteration would be able to simply pick up where he had left off. To ensure it would be so, he left extensive notes in his table. No more guessing just what in the name of all magical happened to his predecessor... Well, no. He still was wondering just what went on to get his previous instance decapitated and where was the rest of the cadaver. Unfortunately, the only person who likely knew wasn't interested in talking, and he currently had no leverage to ensure otherwise.
Tracing the hashishins paid off in spades. While the attempt with invisibility had regrettably failed entirely, his men reported that the plan B actually went off without a hitch. It was complicated and expensive, but he managed to lead hashishins around to the "abandoned" cache of poison and ensure the nullification crystal was "sold" to the right person. Doing so had cost him three men, as hashishins were naturally disinclined to leave behind any witnesses that might tip off the target of an impending assassination, but according to the last report, hashishin had successfully infiltrated the crowd and activated the nullification field. His agent unfortunately was not able to secure the direct observation point and was forced to rely on magical tools to detect the activation of crystal, but that was for the best, really. No chances of lady Gillespie tying the attempt to his men.
Now, all he had to do was wait. The note was sent to the aforementioned lady in the morning, notifying her that the only existing vial of antidote could be had in Kraut, provided some compliance. Given that the target was one of her wives, whom she seemed to genuinely love, Klaus had no doubt she would show up to see who had the antidote, at the very least. He was reasonably certain that he would be able to bargain for the cookie recipe with it. Just to be sure, the antidote was stashed securely in his office, which was very much NOT the place where the meeting would occur. Rather, he demanded attendance at the Ashenvale pass, near the proposed site for the tunnel entrance. So here he was, eyeing the lake of ash and waiting patiently for his quarry to show up. She would, he was certain of it. Lady Gillespie never made a secret out of the fact she mastered the instant travel magic oijans were so zealously guarding and improved upon it, given that she was known to definitely use it several times by now and did not expire as sultanate mages tended to.
"Klaus. Why am I not surprised?" - the question took him by surprise. He was sure there is no way to miss her arrival, yet...
"Ah, lady Gillespie." - he proffered glibly, turning around quickly to cover up his startlement - "I ask of you to hear me out first. Surely, the life of your wife deserves as much?"
"Mmhm. So... speak. Given that you mentioned antidote, I do believe you had some involvement in that last attempt on me and mine. I presume you want something from me for it, no? And, obviously, the actual antidote is stashed somewhere well away from here in a secure place, just in case I decide it's easier to kill you for it than give you whatever it is you want to bargain for, isn't it so?" - she drawled. Klaus had to admire the iron countenance. She seemed bemused. An impressive ability to cover up her actual feelings, all things said, given the bleak despair she must have really felt knowing that the only chance to save her wife lied in the hands of a cunning foe such as himself.
"Oh, nothing onerous, milady." - he proffered - "I do readily concede that we probably have gotten off the wrong foot in our previous interactions. Particularly so, in the first meeting, if the condition of me upon the conclusion of it was of any indication. If it is of any consolation, I do admit that I was excessively heavy-handed in my demands and paid the price for it. I also acknowledge the fact that a gifted alchemist such as yourself might put faith in her skills at concocting elixirs instead of bargaining, if I ask for too much right now."
He paused, forcing back the desire to rub his hands together gleefully - "So all I ask for is the recipe for the cookies."
"...Cookies?" - she repeated with confusion - "Seriously? You want some baking tips? Good grief, what is wrong with you? For that matter, why ask ME for cooking help? Don't you have any bakers in Berlinger?"
"No need to be coy, lady Gillespie." - he chided gently - "You and I both know what cookies I'm talking about. The secret ones that negate the need for sleeping, if you need it spelled out loud. Give me the recipe, and the antidote will be in your hands by the sunset, my word on it."
"Cookies that negate the need for sleep?" - she repeated, scratching the back of her head - "What are you talking about? I never made anything like this."
Klaus clicked his tongue. "We have procured a sample and ascertained its effects." - he pressed on - "I admire your dedication to keeping such valuable knowledge secret, but surely the life of your wife is worth that much?"
"Klaus, read my lips." - she retorted irritably - "I never made anything, cookie-shaped or not, that would negate sleeping. I never would, for that matter, because sleep deprivation would destroy sanity, regardless of how invigorated a body feels. If you found a cookie that made you unable to sleep, you have my condolences, but I had no hand in making it. Steep some poppy pods in milk, that should get you asleep sufficiently well to counteract the negative effects of sleep deprivation."
He groaned, his good mood evaporating. "Really?" - he snarled - "Even though I have held the actual cookie in my hand, you insist on keeping this charade? Fine then. If you don't know anything about it, then I do not know a thing about the antidote."
He was not entirely unprepared for physical assault, but the fact that her hand morphed into a long tentacle to grab him by the throat was startling. Still, he grinned viciously.
"Kill me, and you'll never find the antidote!" - he rasped triumphantly.
"Klaus, you soggy moron..." - she proffered - "I don't NEED an antidote. Your assassin failed. I killed him before he could get a shot off."
His blood stilled for a moment. NO. Impossible. That had to be a bluff. He had no time to object though, as the grip tightened, lifting him off the ground. He clawed at the tentacle, eyes widening as her whole form melted. '...Oh gods, eyes... and teeth... oh godsohgodsohgodsOHGODSNOOOO!'
"Y̻̝͈̱͕̹̭̒O̭̲̞̦U̞̗̖̭̩-̲̗͕̭̯ͦͬ͡T̴̳͓̺͔͓̤̻Ḥ͎͚ͅỈͬṢ̖͉̘-̣͗ͬ̑S̍͝I̺̝̣͗̊͞M͍͉̠̂͒̍ͣ͗̐̅P̤̲̙̯̏̚L̹̱̗̻̓̐̆͊ͅE̢̹̫̪̭̺̳͛-̗͗͊͢Ḍ͗͂̂ͧȨͫ̔ͦ͗L̍ͬ̏͒͝Uͯ̓̉͊͑ͪ̚҉̱͈͍̫̫̩̼D͚̅ͬͭ̊ͥEͬ̀D̳̻͚̜͓̩̎ ͇̟̭̤͜T͈̻͓̫̩̀̇I̩̟̤ͣ́M̉ͥ̂E͕̗̊ͅ/̥͎̞̤͚̤̤͗̋̃̉͟M̿̂̀ͬ̉̒͏̗̠̭͚͚O̸̜͉̩̟̙̙ͮͫͤM̵̠̬̼͍̹̦͗̉̓ͧ̐ͤE̜̝̺̞̹̬͛̍̊̑̂N͉̲̻̰̔T̵̲̙͔̤̲͒͗/̵̝̗̝̯̭̤̤̃̅ͫO̫̘̙͉̙͂ͧ̍ͫ̈̀͌͠ͅP̾̓͟P̯̼̑ͧͪ̄͝O̩̥͇͉͖̤͑̓̀́̚ͅȒ̫̃͋̋ͯ͐͌Ț͛U͒͌̎̋̋ͣ̚͞N̨̥ͧͩͬ̃͌̈́I̶͍͚̼̳̦̣̝͌T̜̲̥̗̩̥Y͖͓̠͈̦͜ ͙̋̕T͉̀̅̇͋͆̍̎͝O̡͚̙̦͍͂̐̊ ̪̯̜̫͔F̵̘̮̩͇̭͙̥̄L̼͚̃ͤͤͭ̒̾Y̠̠̠̍̍̇ͦ͋/̠̲̺̲̐̉͌́A̷̮͓ͦ̿͂ͭ͑ͨS̮͙͇̠̝̥͐͠C̜̤͖ͥ͊̃͐Ḛ̹̒̔̄̃͡N̤͊̚D̺ͮͦ̾̅/̦̻̗̤̜̓ͪ̈́̔ͬ̈́̄͜A͔̼̖̝̖̲͌ͦ̔̿̀C̹̞͚ͩͭ͐̇̓́ͅC͙̱̈́̾́̒̈ͥE͍̱̱͍ͬͤ̎Ĺ͚̭̝̻̣̆̇̕ẺR̂̎Ą̏̀͋̄ͧ͌̋Ṭ̞̣͚͖̮̲̐E͂͑ͮ͝/͓̝̞̮͈̺́A̧̫̩̬ͤRͧ͝C̜̬͎̜͕͈̭͊͑̔̀.҉͔̥̙ "
- the horror in front of him uttered before lofting him into the caldera. Sinking into the ashes was strangely relieving.
Deprived of sleep, deprived of life. Poor soul got blinded by a cookie. Is that really just a cookie or is it actually a chip made out of dangerous substance? This looks like another life taken away by drugs.
I prefer my chocolate cookie with raisins.
He ate the cookie from cookie clicker. In a way, he is lucky he didn`t turn into grandma on the spot.
I've been wondering if it was crystallized caffeine, but it turns out to be something even more dangerous!
Funny how scrying magic can spawn concepts from the games our dear eldritch horror most likely played in her past life.
@Cytotoxin Never played it, what's the deal with the cookies?
@Kagetokage Cookie Clicker explores the implication of a society where producing 10 quindecillion cookies every second is a valid business model. It gets weird.
@Kagetokage This video explains it pretty well (around 10 min) https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2Dx76lD8Scc
@Cytotoxin
Could you, in brackets, after the roar, indicate what the MC said in normal language? I'm not solving charades, but reading a novel.
@HaimaUrt Check the comments.
@Cytotoxin
what comment?
Is it really so difficult to point out that the MC roar, in the text is normal in brackets? I cannot read red letters on a red background.
@HaimaUrt The point was, more or less, that what she said was nigh-incomprehensible for the condition Klaus was in.
Roughly summarizing, she said "Klaus, time to fly." Basically just stating her intent to throw him into the ash.
@Cytotoxin
I understand for what purpose you are using this writing style, but English is not my native language and it is difficult for me to read even stuttering, not to mention such a style, so I ask you to indicate the meaning of the fictional in the spoiler if the text is intended for readers. You normally used different languages and indicated the translation in the spoiler, how is this different?
@HaimaUrt You can easily strip the adornments and just see plain text. Which is in english. Honestly, at this point, I`m just kind of sitting there expecting someone would show up to demand that I include translation notes from english to english.
P.S. Simply highlight the line for quick and dirty stripping of words out of chaff.
@HaimaUrt The chapter was from Klaus' point of view and conceptual language is a ridiculous thing that drives many to insanity if exposed poorly. Not to mention that Alyssa exposes her true form too thus making Klaus' understanding of it even murkier. Since we the readers were reading from his viewpoint, it only makes sense to have a hard time understanding it like a difficult captcha code.
Readers often see things from a characters viewpoint and thus have the same understanding as that character does at that moment. Of course there is the bonus as a reader that we have multiple viewpoints to look through and broaden our own understanding but when looking at one viewpoint, what one sees is limited. We may not even know as much as that character does depending on how the author is portraying the story. Just the way it is and it isn't a flaw but a feature the author purposely intended. Plus, since we are being honest, it probably took more effort to write those various sentences asking author to strip away text for you than just doing it yourself, asking a friend or just perusing the comments.
Y̻̝͈̱͕̹̭̒O̭̲̞̦U̞̗̖̭̩-̲̗͕̭̯ͦͬ͡T̴̳͓̺͔͓̤̻Ḥ͎͚ͅỈͬṢ̖͉̘-̣͗ͬ̑S̍͝I̺̝̣͗̊͞M͍͉̠̂͒̍ͣ͗̐̅P̤̲̙̯̏̚L̹̱̗̻̓̐̆͊ͅE̢̹̫̪̭̺̳͛-̗͗͊͢Ḍ͗͂̂ͧȨͫ̔ͦ͗L̍ͬ̏͒͝Uͯ̓̉͊͑ͪ̚҉̱͈͍̫̫̩̼D͚̅ͬͭ̊ͥEͬ̀D̳̻͚̜͓̩̎ ͇̟̭̤͜T͈̻͓̫̩̀̇I̩̟̤ͣ́M̉ͥ̂E͕̗̊ͅ/̥͎̞̤͚̤̤͗̋̃̉͟M̿̂̀ͬ̉̒͏̗̠̭͚͚O̸̜͉̩̟̙̙ͮͫͤM̵̠̬̼͍̹̦͗̉̓ͧ̐ͤE̜̝̺̞̹̬͛̍̊̑̂N͉̲̻̰̔T̵̲̙͔̤̲͒͗/̵̝̗̝̯̭̤̤̃̅ͫO̫̘̙͉̙͂ͧ̍ͫ̈̀͌͠ͅP̾̓͟P̯̼̑ͧͪ̄͝O̩̥͇͉͖̤͑̓̀́̚ͅȒ̫̃͋̋ͯ͐͌Ț͛U͒͌̎̋̋ͣ̚͞N̨̥ͧͩͬ̃͌̈́I̶͍͚̼̳̦̣̝͌T̜̲̥̗̩̥Y͖͓̠͈̦͜ ͙̋̕T͉̀̅̇͋͆̍̎͝O̡͚̙̦͍͂̐̊ ̪̯̜̫͔F̵̘̮̩͇̭͙̥̄L̼͚̃ͤͤͭ̒̾Y̠̠̠̍̍̇ͦ͋/̠̲̺̲̐̉͌́A̷̮͓ͦ̿͂ͭ͑ͨS̮͙͇̠̝̥͐͠C̜̤͖ͥ͊̃͐Ḛ̹̒̔̄̃͡N̤͊̚D̺ͮͦ̾̅/̦̻̗̤̜̓ͪ̈́̔ͬ̈́̄͜A͔̼̖̝̖̲͌ͦ̔̿̀C̹̞͚ͩͭ͐̇̓́ͅC͙̱̈́̾́̒̈ͥE͍̱̱͍ͬͤ̎Ĺ͚̭̝̻̣̆̇̕ẺR̂̎Ą̏̀͋̄ͧ͌̋Ṭ̞̣͚͖̮̲̐E͂͑ͮ͝/͓̝̞̮͈̺́A̧̫̩̬ͤRͧ͝C̜̬͎̜͕͈̭͊͑̔̀.҉͔̥̙ "
By the way, it says "You this simple deluded time/moment/opportunity to fly/ascend/accelerate/arc." Or as author said, Klaus, time to fly. Include idiot/deluded as well. Klaus is too paranoid for his own good (being paranoid is one thing but acting on unconfirmed suspicious is a risky gamble that he always loses). Doesn't help that he insists on the hard way.
@Ediav42 @Cytotoxin
Once again, I understand for what purpose you are using this writing style, but English is not my first language. Why is it difficult to make such a spoiler
You this simple deluded time / moment / opportunity to fly / ascend / accelerate / arc.
?
I`m just kind of sitting there expecting someone would show up to demand that I include translation notes from english to english.
Very funny, then explain to me what is written here, I don't understand ...
godsohgodsohgodsOHGODSNOOOO
What's funny is that I can't understand what is written when the characters stutter, fizzle, talk with a full mouth, mutters to himself or use some kind of bestial accent like meow at the end? And yes, I've very often seen in other novels when such things in spoilers or brackets indicate the normal text.
@HaimaUrt English is not my first language either. What`s your point?
Look. At the risk of being blunt? I consider your request to be superficial. It takes minimal effort to find out what was said, there are numerous ways to achieve that. Asking for more is just too much. I`m a hobbyist novelist, not a thesaurus editor.
@HaimaUrt Basically panicking oh gods, of gods, oh gods, oh gods no (it is a polytheistic society with actually existing deities that make their presence known at times such as smiting really bad people that show up at temples) that Klaus’ mind is saying as his sanity is collapsing. It’s a panicked exhalation to their deity (or deities in this instance). It is common for people to “call on higher beings” when faced with great challenges and things beyond their control, comprehension and ability to handle (Alyssa is all of these and more).
@Ediav42
Thank you very much for such a detailed answer, although a simple translation was enough.
@Cytotoxin
Судя по тому, что ты прекрасно писал на украинском, ты с Украины? Тогда не понятно, зачем себя вести как троль, если ты понимаешь, что читать не на родном языке очень сложно, особенно искаверканую речь. И вместо того что-бы прислушаться к советам читателей, ты их тролишь...
@HaimaUrt ...For crying out loud. This is english site, use english. Yes, I have more then passing familiarity with Ukrainian and Russian. That does not mean I intend to use either in the comments.
I do NOT FIND it excessively hard to find out what one unimportant bit meant and consider your complaint to be EXCESSIVE. Believe it or not, I actually have people to give me advice, and they`re all united in opinion that there was nothing excessively complicated about that line.
You were never MEANT to grasp anything more then vague direction from it, at best. Demanding exact translation for what was never MEANT to have any definite meaning is beyond entitled. It`s being outright dismissive of my intent as an author. What next, are you going to tell me I should rewrite the whole thing on Russian for your convenience?
@Cytotoxin
I am sure that with all your desire to write in Russian better than a google translator, you have failed.
I sympathize with you that you have such friends who advise you not to listen to the wishes of the reader, but to continue to make a puzzle out of the book (I don't know about other readers, but I don't want to look for the meaning of the text you distorted on the Internet or ask friends or acquaintances, what did you encrypt there when a stuttering cat girl with a full mouth mutters something under her breath in fright). And your boorish and aggressive attitude to the usual request to write explanations in English to complex and incomprehensible parts of the text (since some of the readers are not native English speakers and cannot understand the text), in general, the height of idiocy.
Instead of writing such huge malicious comments to yours "stupid" readers, it would be better if you would release more chapters ..
@HaimaUrt Бога ж душу христофора колумба...
Окей, будем совсем по простому. Не всякий совет имеет цену. Данный? Как-бы совсем не в тему. Эта конкретная реплика изначально была задумана как непонятная и смутная. Требовать перевод для того что в принципе не задумывалось как что-то легко понимабельное немного нахально.
Долбить мне мозги о том что уже в который раз было отвергнуто как не соответствующее задумке автора не нужно. Вообще. Я уже услышала, поняла и решила что не хочу.
Так понятно?
Не нужно. Не хочу. Не принято. Тема закрыта. Окей?
@Cytotoxin
We have already understood from previous comments that you don’t care about the opinions and requests of readers and the fact that you are writing a novel for yourself and several “friends” whose opinion is important to you, only then it is not clear why you publish it in the public domain, if someone else's opinion you are not interested and you are rude to your readers about comments you don't like?
@HaimaUrt Oh, I listen to comments and advice, but I don`t blindly follow each one. Some are sound suggestions and I have no compunctions about them. It just happens that yours specifically goes contrary to what I intended and you don`t seem to grasp that.
@HaimaUrt this seems to be getting way too personal and it should end for the good of all involved parties.
Although I will say that author isn’t obligated to give an explanation at all (especially such a minor sequence that can be deciphered) but is generally quite engaged and forthcoming with responding to reader comments and such (they did actually respond to your initial question even though they didn’t initially want to and you are still on it). Just seems to be getting too heated and escalated for something that started so minor.
Hope everyone has a good day.
@Cytotoxin
It turns out that you can communicate normally and defend your position without rudeness, using the minimum number of characters. It’s a pity that you don’t want to listen to my request and the voice of reason, as you are writing for a multinational audience. The use of such writing methods as: stuttering, muttering, animal accents, voices of God, etc., greatly complicates the perception of your novel, and also constantly throws you out of immersion in it.
I am not a critic or an editor, I am just studying, and English is not my native language, but even now I could find thousands of reasons for editing your novel. There are the basics of writing different genres, the arrangement of works, etc., but for some reason young writers stubbornly ignore this and take any constructive criticism or advice with hostility.
@HaimaUrt It would be easier if people accepted "No." as an answer instead of reason to argue more. Hell, I`d even explain my reasoning for declining advice if asked. It`s the blithe dismissal of my disagreement and insistence that "ohmigosh just take my advice and stop being stoopid" that gets me annoyed.
@Cytotoxin For what it's worth I found the chapter fine as it was. I've used something similar with my own novels so I know where you are coming from. Now on to the important topic, can't wait to see what bumbling antics the next Klaus will get up to.
@Cytotoxin I just want to support you with this comment, alongside otherwise negativity. It's awesome to get constructive criticism that you agree with (which this thread early on became not); it is you writing the story you want, not what others think you should. You've got a vision, a story, and I love it. Do what you want, be safe, be healthy, be happy (if I dare presume lol).
@Cytotoxin Keep doing what you do, some people don't seem to remember that you are the one giving us content free of charge, and if anything this novel is one of the higher quality ones on this website in writing quality.
@Cytotoxin I was wondering why my notifications were getting flooded but it turns out to be an attention seeker. At times like these, I suggest that silence is golden. End the arguments with a friendly "Thank you for the comments, but I still agree to disagree." and then take a break from replying to the comments for a while.
Also,I like how Alyssa's somewhat messed up language when thinking/speaking in Shoggoth adds to the flavor of the series since it emphasizes how different she is from the masses. Besides, it's not like people can always think straight when faced with sudden, unfamiliar or shocking situations.
Lastly, I appreciate how you answered my questions. It's been a while since anyone have tolerated me asking this many.
P.S.: I still can't comprehend how this comment thread became too long. wtf
@Cytotoxin I feel like I predicted this mess and I do not feel happy about it.
@HaimaUrt At least try to make actual valid points instead of just insulting the author's intelligence, which is entirely uncalled for.
@Cytotoxin Some hopefully constructive criticism here. I like the idea of the text but, I feel like snark and clever comments don't work in that format. It's supposed to be blunt to the point of having multiple translations to get pure concepts across so, doesn't work here in my opinion
So basically he could've just clicked the cookie he had to get more cookies and unleash the coockie hell. He then proceeds to eat the mighty cookie thus preventing the cookie armagedon, he is a hero... to bad he targeted Alyssa's waifus... he went from hero to well compost
@Ruiso No, it`s not a clicking cookie he gets. If he got THAT, sh*t would go to hell in a handbasket. He just gets one of the random cookies from that world.
@Cytotoxin
One of the Gold Cookies that gives random buffs that appear at a random place on the screen?
@Ruiso No. One of the many many many cookies you bake during the game.
@Cytotoxin Looking at it that way, the spell Klaus used is potentially a world ending one if unlucky enough. Of course, the scrying target is required to have a connection with another world but MC has that in spades.
@Ediav42 like imagine if he gets an anti-matter bomb from a movie she watched and detonated by accident while examining it, there would be no more Kingdom just a giant crater on the ground.
@Cytotoxin wait but if those cookies grant so much power.... no wonder it will cause an apocalypse since they get them northward of the trillions per seconds... that is to much power.
@Ruiso They don`t. They are the RESULT of having too much power. One of the cookies literally lampshades this by saying "it bears an image of industrialist gone mad with power".
@Cytotoxin wait cookie clicker the thing with a single cookie that may represent an potentially infinite amount?
@Cytotoxin Aka: She Yeeted Klaus God knows where lol!!!
@Cytotoxin Cat clergy can fix anything. Seriously hard to get weirder than that without explicitly going eldricht.
@Cytotoxin i just freaking LOVE the shoggoth speech text thingy. its so damn cool!!!!
@Citotoxina Es mera curiosidad, pero sigues jugando ese juego? Tengo curiosidad de cuán alto se puede llegar después de varios años
@Yuena1 72.641 sextillion cookies this run. 65.5 trillion prestige, working on some higher prestige upgrades currently. ^_^
@Citotoxina una locura de puntos
Increíble, veré si algún día logro llegar allí