Sign: Snake
Buffs: Serpent’s Kiss (Romance twice as easy)
Debuffs: Curse of the Unspecified (Start the game with no gender, no name, and no other identifying feature)
EXP: 1,200
Alchemy
Coagula (LVL 1, 24 SKP)
Solvé (LVL 0, 29 SKP)
Theoria (LVL 1, 23 SKP)
Botany
Sowing (LVL 0, 5 SKP)
Tending (LVL 0, 65 SKP) Ready to level up!
?
Cooking
Fire (LVL 1, 28 SKP)
Water (LVL 0, 24 SKP)
?
Homesteading
Fire Tending (LVL 0, 7 SKP)
Tidying (LVL 1, 106 SKP) Ready to level up!
?
Speech
Logic (LVL 1, 23 SKP)
Linguistics (LVL 0, 41 SKP) Ready to level up!
Cajoling (LVL 0, 10 SKP)
Total SKP: 386
Inventory:
Auros: 0.15
Cards of Destiny: 5 of ?? Discovered
Names: 4
Evengeline, The Pure Snow (Holly)
Vitas, The Wind Thief (Sparrow)
Gillygad, The Stitched-Up Wonder (Pitchfork)
Zinia, The Serpent’s Caress (Snake)
Passive Skills:
(Theoria LVL 1) Pure Substances: Some metals are especially luminous. Some hands are more precise than others. These hands shall become sharpened scalpels, made of the most luminous Silver. Higher maximum Quality points are possible for all potions.
(Coagula LVL 1) Coalescing Membranes: The membranes of the parts which make up the whole shall be in accordance. Ingredients combine more smoothly, producing higher quality potions.
(Fire LVL 1) Ignited: The Elemental branch of magic lends this Sorcerer the ability to cook faster using fire. Prepare fried or baked meals twice as quickly. Get burnt less.
(Tidying LVL 1) Dirt Buster: The magical branch of Purification lends this Sorcerer the ability to ‘Bust Dirt.’ Dust and grime accumulate at an infinitesimally slow rate on objects you have cleaned.
(Logic LVL 1) Rhetoric: The magical branch of Entreatment lends this Sorcerer the ability of heightened ‘Rhetoric.’ The structure of your arguments is smooth, regular, and orthogonal. Spirits and people are more likely to agree with you.
Spells:
Wild and Overwhelming Growth (LVL 1) Accelerate the growth of plants and fungi. Enchanted plants grow ten times faster (Overwhelming Influence), BUT enchanted plants sometimes disregard their original form..
Mated With A Strong Bond, Lesser Baptism (LVL 1) Skill actions performed by the enchanted object grant the Sorcerer one fifth of their SKP and EXP (Strong Influence) but the objects must be enchanted in identical pairs.
The pasty and doughy mess on the kitchen table was starting to come together.
I had measured out the flour, the muddy water, and the silty earth from the bottom of the river, to make sure I had the right proportions. Then, like I was folding milk or oil into the flour before making a cake, I was to incrementally introduce the wet mud and murky water into the flour, a little at a time.
At first, I thought that I would end up with a horrible and sticky mess of flour and mud. But, as I worked and kneaded the dough, adding a little mud and a little water, it had started to turn into one large clump.
After the water and mud were combined into the flour, I had one very large ball of dough-mud. It had a peculiar fleshy color, which I did not expect when mixing the ingredients.
To Shape:
Take care not to make your little one too stumpy or too reedy. I believe that the ideal proportion would be that of a human. But. But, but, but, but.
There are always buts with these things, you see? If you are making a poppet the height of a common cat, how small shall that little hand be? Will it be big enough to grip the items of this world which are made for far bigger hands? How shall the little darling live in such a world, which has carved itself into the image of a six foot tall man?
Think of these things Sorcerer, and take care to shape the little one right. Oh, and make the head bigger than you think you should. But not so big. Just big enough.
Right, thanks Gigert. That was crystal clear.
The first thing I did was divide my dough-mud-ball into two identical portions. That was the whole point, wasn’t it? I wanted to try out my Lesser Baptism spell, and I could only do it if I had two identical objects.
It suddenly seemed rather silly to be creating something just to try out a spell.
But, the spell! It would give me passive EXP and SKP gain. These poppets I would make would be so helpful! And I had already gotten so far. I had spent all my money on the flour, and there was no going back now.
I looked at my twin dough balls, and got to shaping them.
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After getting through shaping my dough, and looking critically at my work, I decided that I had not done such a bad job. The poppets were each just over a foot tall, laying side by side on the kitchen table. I had made sure to make them look identical to each other.
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They had bobble-heads (as Gigert suggested to make the heads bigger) and larger hands to hold things. I had attempted to shape fingers, but gave it up when I realized I didn’t have the skill for that. Instead, each of the dough-poppets had a mitten-like hand. A thumb was the most useful finger, I reasoned.
And, for the first time in a while, I had fun! Shaping the dough-poppets, with Cheerful hopping on the table next to me, was a lovely way to spend the late evening. I didn’t even feel the tiredness creeping in as I worked. I was sure that I would be getting the ‘Tired’ debuff soon, but I was pleased that I hadn't yet. I couldn’t go to sleep until my work was complete!
I had Ma Chère propped open against a teapot as I worked, so I could reference it without getting my muddied and floured handprints on the pages.
Cheerful observed my work. Every now and again, he would squeak out a comment.
“Little boy, little girl!” He creaked.
“I’m not sure that they have a gender, actually.” I said to the bird, and started.
I was reminded uncomfortably of my own predicament. It was odd to have something in common with these dough-poppets.
“Right, let’s keep going.” I said out loud, to banish my thoughts.
“Keep going! Keep going! Let’s bake them! Let’s bake the bread boy, let’s bake the bread girl! Delicious bread! Yummy bread!” Cheerful answered me.
“Oh, no, they’re not for eating!” I said, looking with horror at the bird, “Didn’t you see me pour muddy water into the dough?”
Cheerful said that he understood, but I was still worried. With the poppets shaped into a vaguely human-like form, it was hard not to feel like they were real. Truly, a little boy and a little girl.
The introduction of the blood:
Make a divet in the chest cavity. Pour the herbal wine into it, slowly. Allow it to seep into the dough.
Close the cavity when the wine-blood is no longer at the surface.
I was glad for the clearer instructions. I did just as Gigert suggested, and made two coin-sized holes in the chests of the dough poppets.
I divided the herb-steeped wine (which I had skimmed off the top from my Dancing Tongue brew) into two equal portions and began to pour the first one, slowly.
It was absorbed immediately. I blinked. I could see the red stain of the wine creeping through the fleshy dough of the poppet, almost like veins under skin.
I poured wine into the second poppet, observing the same effects.
The introduction of the bones:
Sprinkle the brick dust onto the joints of the little dear. Massage it in.
Again, I followed the instructions to the letter. I thought that the knee joints and the arm joints felt a little stiffer after the introduction of ‘bones' to the dough.
The rest:
Add anything else you might need.
I still had the Belladonna berries. I marked out a spot on each poppet, and pushed the berries in deep, so that they would not fall out.
If they shall have eyes, set them, and close them.
I gently pinched a little dough, and folded it over the berries. The effect was uncanny. It did look like my poppets had eyes, which were merely closed.
For the Pneuma:
The soul shall come in through the mouth. You did not forget to shape a little mouth did you? Pour the pneuma into the mouth, slowly. Close, but do not seal the mouth after you have finished.
“Well, you didn’t tell me there was to be a mouth!” I said out loud to the book propped open in front of me.
“Mouth? What mouth? I didn’t say?” Cheerful replied, worried.
“Oh, I’m sorry, not you.” I told him, and went to work shaping two identical mouths into my poppets.
After I had done the mouths, I pinched a little dough in the middle of each poppet’s face to make a tiny nose. I even used a knife to score miniscule nostrils. Then, since the dolls already had eyes, noses, and mouths, I went and did the ears, making another tiny hole with a knife.
It was time to introduce the ‘Pneuma.’ I took the spittle I had measured out and poured a little into each mouth. Like the herbal wine, it was absorbed instantly.
Then, when I poured my blood into the first poppet, something strange happened. The blood disappeared down the poppet’s mouth-hole, and without me doing anything, the mouth seemed to close. I blinked when I saw it. There was still a line in the dough where I had scored the mouth. I thought it might have moved due to the dough becoming soggier, as I introduced fluids. I shrugged, and kept going to the second poppet.
I looked carefully this time while pouring my own blood into the dough poppet. And again, I very clearly observed the tiny mouth I had scored into the dough close after the last drop of blood was poured in. It could have been my imagination, but I thought I heard a satisfied smack from the miniscule lips.
I watched the twin poppets for a minute, wondering if they would move again. They didn’t.
The Four Baptisms:
One. Begin with fire, to engender the spark and the movement. Your dough should bloom a lovely blush before taking it out. Use your own hands as much as possible, to remind the little one by whom it is held and bound.
It sounded like Gigert wanted me to stick the doll into fire using my own hands. I glanced at the fireplace. It was a good thing I had the Ignited perk, from leveling Fire Cooking. I wasn’t sure if I could manage to hold the doll long enough, but it was better than sticking my hands into the flames without any protection.
I wondered if I should use an oven mitt, but decided against it. I had to use my own hands, after all.
I threw on a couple of fresh logs and some thin branches and stoked the fire until it rose higher. Doubting myself every step, I gently picked up the first doll, expecting it to come apart completely in my hands. It did not. The arms and legs hung down limp like I was picking up a tiny, unconscious person. Somehow, it all held together.
I positioned the doll on the edge of my hands and put it over the fire.
Even by the weak light, I could see the dough changing color, at an unnaturally fast pace. I couldn’t have held it more than a minute when the new color completely engulfed the poppet. I pulled it out and repeated the procedure for the second doll.
I didn’t even get burned! My hands were a little red like I had held them in hot water, but there was no pain. The dolls were now warm to the touch.
My eyes found the next step in Ma Chère.
Two. Clean the darling in water. Speak softly to it. As gently as the water rolls over the dough, let your words caress the new thing into life.
I took the dolls to the kitchen sink. I turned on the tap, and lifted one to the water, letting the water run over the dough. Again, I expected the dough to act like, well, dough. Putting it under water would surely loosen it and turn my poppets into paste. But the water beaded on the surface of the dolls and didn’t penetrate.
I remembered that I was supposed to say something to the doll.
“Erm, I’m Andy,” I started, not sure what to say, “or, at least, that’s the name I got from Aleister and Cheerful. I don’t know the name I was born with, that’s gone now,” I continued, feeling a painful lump in my throat, but swallowing it down.
“I haven’t figured out a name for you yet, but I’ll definitely give you one,” I said, looking down at the small doll in my hands, “And I won’t let the bird eat you.” I finished and put the doll back on the table.
I felt something like kinship with the doughy shape. It was hard to be thrust into this world, without a name, or memories, or anything that ties one to a past. Would that be how my dolls came awake? Like I did, when I woke up to the puzzle of locked doors?
I picked up the second doll, and carried it over to the sink. I washed it, and said similar things, trying not to think about the connection between me and these objects which I would be enchanting shortly.
Three: For air, simply breathe into the nostrils of the doll. I know that you have not forgotten nostrils.
I followed the instructions and gave the dolls a pseudo-CPR life breath. It was hard to observe the dolls with my face inches from theirs, but I thought I caught sight of the little chest moving up and down as I breathed into the nostrils I had scored in dough.
Four. We come to the last Baptism: Earth. I have experimented and have found two ways to do this. Bury the darling outside, under the open sky. Or, place your poppet in a container (I’ve found a bathtub to be most suitable) and throw enough dirt on top to completely cover and shield the doll.
Why choose one over the other?
I will tell you that the natural earth will give your doll a much more powerful enchantment. But, are there any bones buried there, where you wish to baptize your sweet poppet? Unless you know for certain that there are no dead things sleeping in your backyard, I would steer clear of this method. I will not go into details of my own wretched experiences with commingling enchantment Sorcery with the dead, but suffice it to say, the outcome can be most gruesome.
After the doll is buried, let it sleep for one whole day. Every living thing starts its life by sleeping (in a womb, or an egg, etc), and your little dear is no different. Take the day to sew them their clothes. The next night, wake them up with Lesser or Greater Baptism, as you have the skill to do.
Oh, and Sorcerer, whatever noises you might hear, do not wake the dolls until it has been one day.
Just as I finished the instructions, I got a message.
Debuff: Tired
EXP gains are decreased.
Sleep is essential. Missing sleep is a hazard to mind and body.
(Warning: Tiredness may cause Visions!)
My eyes were getting grainy, and I had to constantly rub them to keep myself awake. But I was almost done! After reading the last ‘Baptism’ section, I decided I would go with the safer method, put the twin dolls into my bathtub, and cover them with earth. I quickly got up and went to do so.
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When I finished, it was the dead of night. I was exhausted. I went to sleep thinking of the little boy and the little girl sleeping in the dirt, in the downstairs bathtub.
I had placed them carefully, side by side, on the white tub floor and then poured black dirt over them, like a blanket. When I was done, you could not see either poppet. I felt satisfied with my work, and went upstairs to bed.
What shall I name them? I thought to myself, as I drifted off.