Praise Opportunity

I didn't know it was an installer icon rather than an app icon?

Ly'lac: Install cha.OS.

Weren’t you reading? TC already remotely installed the program while you were ignoring them. A totally wholesome and not creepy invasion of privacy. What a chum.

Oh so that IS the app icon, it's just new and she hasn't used it yet.

Terezi is moving things along I see.

> OK4Y W1S3 4SS. S3TUP CH4.OS.

No need to be rude.

Hm, Ly'lac may have some dubious awareness of the shrill Terezi console voice guiding some of her actions.

The setup interface looks pretty simple. You can just drag and drop NAGLINK directly into the program and– FUCK!!

They've written Ly'lac such that I have NO earthly idea whether or not that was her intention. XD (Love how the cursor bounces helplessly across the screen from the explosion.)

===>

You accidentally blew up cha.OS. Luckily it looks like there's a second file already here.

Ah, that'll speed things back along.

You VERY CAREFULLY drop cha.OS directly into the program and it imports all your settings, friends, chat history, file attachments, biodata... wow! TC thought of everything! ...You guess you should probably check that other message.

"Through the Unknown, we'll find the New", huh? Wonder whose slogan that is. One of the Overseers of this game (Dirk/Rose)? It's not written in TC's quirk, at least.

It can "searchID" <insert peer handle> "exhumepeer" <search peer id> and "devotepeer" <add peer> as basic functions, plus a server search... probably helpful for adding new people across various frames of reference as the universal chat client it is. The search function implies they may not completely know what some of the others go by who they'll meet and will need to use this extra Cha.OS function to find them across realms and add them to their contacts. Maybe.

Ly'lac: Check other message.

Let’s not. Looks like you’ve been included in some sort of public server for the game. Wow, that's an absurd amount of people. Are they all TC’s friends? They all seem to be arguing. It’s pretty... discordant in here. <nymphcool emoji>

Ooh interesting! Looks like this isn't a Sburb Alpha situation, and so the whole of their races are indeed participating in SHURB, or at least will try to... it's just our main Judge and Overseers (I'm just calling Dirk and Rose the Overseers for convenience, that one's not a formal title or anything) are going to be focused on one particular session-- the "most important" session, the reason they launched on this world-and-session-birthing quest in the first place.

I see "agamemnonsTheory" is banning people left and right (no idea from the name what their classpect association might be from just the handle or any of the others, they're not as obviously associated as GC's handle as of yet), Mac and PC still exist for laughs, the Bee Movie exists for laughs, Taco Bell exists for laughs...

===>

WHAT THE HELL, THAT'S JUST THE ANSWER TO THE ULTIMATE RIDDLE WRITTEN OUT RIGHT THERE BY TC LIKE IT'S NOTHING! >:O

They intentionally swapped out "will" with "want" so it wouldn't be completely obviously tied to the Neverending Story reference, which in turn was referencing Aleister Crowley's concept of the True Will, as was pointed out to me by someone fairly recently:

This work outlines key principles, including the axioms "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law" and "love is the law, love under will", emphasizing personal freedom and the pursuit of one's true path.

Putting it out there as the chaotic non-ruleset ruleset for a Cha.OS server chat seems a way for TC to emphasize the chaotic-seeming side of that law of existence. Also, seems TC may or may not have a penchant for muppets if the Kermit gif is the start of a pattern.

You skim the #RULES_CHANNEL and notice a special message addressed to you. TC: ly'ly' yøu can gø ahead and pøp over to the mød channel #palehørse-darkgeniuses :)

"ly'ly'" is a cute nickname, even if it doesn't save any characters. Anyway, seems we're going into a private mods channel to narrow this chat down to our protagonists. (Also I notice more ash piles from files that have exploded during the wait/setup in the background, so at least the exploding files aren't exploding the whole computer just yet.)

===>

Gosh Ly'lac is so adorably irascible. Downright world-weary. We're meant to draw continual visual comparisons to young Rose Lalonde, I'm sure.

Mod chat? Does he expect you to be in charge of all these strangers? The ability to moderate messages, to report, ban, and kick as you see fit... who would want to hold that kind of power over others? Who COULD? Not you, that's for sure.

As Life embodies Power and energy in most all its forms, including the sort of power a ruler holds over subjects or a moderator over a chat platform, one who eschews the Life aspect as Ly'lac clearly does might be more liable to dismiss or hold distaste for that sort of power than others. You wouldn't see Meenah Peixes or certain instances of Jane turning down positions of power very easily unless they'd become more balanced in their Hero Roles to the point where they knew where to stop themselves.

Another coin-flip side of the Life/Doom dynamic could see a Doom player embracing personal power (Life) in order to enforce ORDER and rules/restrictions (Doom) on others, using one for the other as a Thief of Life might. That doesn't appear to be Ly'lac's action orientation when it comes to her aspect and its pair.

Ly'lac: Check other messages for real this time. Seriously for real.

Oh FINE. You tab over to your Nag-Gagg'le. ...Or you would if it was still there. You guess it's a "Peer Tab" now. How banal. You mentally prepare yourself to read a garrulous wall of maroon nonsense. Let’s see what she's on about today.

We'll finally get to see AA (auguryAside)'s oracle-like deal and how Seer-y or not it seems? Requoted from Ly'lac's conversation with Vriska about her:

GC: AA (that’s oomf)—* has def been bugging you about this because she cannot fucking help herself… GC: if it’s one thing she gonna do it’s bug or fuss or meddle. [...] GC: um anyway she’s like an oracle… GC: except she’s not an oracle. GC: she’s some other shit…

She's certainly a talker at least, from how Ly'lac makes it sound. Let's see.

===>

OH MY that is a different squid-head-shape and she seems to take herself MUCH more seriously from just that visual. Is that Orb the typical way non-salvaged-tech-using Nymphs use to computer, a symbol of Augury being employed here, or both?

Oh huge wall of text incoming.

-- auguryAside [AA] began negging gavageCunctation [GC] -- AA: Grand rising, queen. AA: Let us get these starch based fuel units. AA: I urge thee to respond as soon as thou art not busy.

The alien version of "get this bread". Gee, it feels like each of the Nymphs we've talked to has a significant cross-section of Rose Lalonde in them, doesn't it? Like different sides of her personality, Ly'lac the pessimistic facet and AA the loquacious/overdramatic facet. It makes me wonder if the three Satyrs will follow the same pattern with Dirk, or how our third Nymph will differently reflect Rose...

AA: Which should be immediate, as thou art like, never busy. AA: And with today's deliciously malicious circumstances being as they are... AA: I'd gamble that thee even awoke before midday. (Egads!) AA: And thou know how loath I am to gamble! AA: Bahahaha! <8{<XD

She's flaunting SOME sort of predictive ability or advance knowhow, at least, even if possibly only an intuition-based one (though not likely). (What is that emote? I can't parse it yet, I probably will if I see another example...)

Also, those suffering from depression might have a tendency to sleep-in on a regular basis.

AA: Today, my dear dark sister, we have been called to fulfill a destiny most glorious. AA: In preparation of this: allow me to remind thee of a few adamantine truths to keep thy upper organon on the track to success. AA: Ignoring me may give thee momentary peace. But it will not save thee. AA: The work of the heretical ungulates may bring thee mindless amusement. But it will not save thee.

The "heretical ungulates"? Oh, ungulate = "hoofed mammal", so she's dunking on Satyrs here.

AA: Not even those garish scrawlcels so pertinaciously claimed to be "art" can save thee from the wrath of fate. AA: (The last part about thy cartoons was simply a bit of mocking jest.) AA: (Thy hobbies and interests are valid, my friend.) <8{:)

Ah, so the "<8{" part is absolutely a whole-goddamn-ass capital-S Squid on AA's head, where GC has a flatter and more octopus-like Squiddle "hairpiece" (or "upper organon" unless that just means head).

AA seems to love doomsaying, though tempers anything that might be construed as an insult clarifying that it's only a friendly jab because she does genuinely care about her friends enough to interrupt her monologues to reinforce that.

AA: But this hath always been the case! AA: As thee well know, Death is never the end. AA: The stage is set; it is merely time to perform. AA: There are countless forces working against my success. AA: But we will overcome them all!

Between AA's abbreviation, her color, and her talk of Death-associated predictions... I'm reading Time player off of this one so far. Certainly one of the most loquacious Time players we might have seen, but that could indicate a number of classes despite her Augury obsession... her talkativeness could just as easily be that of a Sylph as a Seer, and the way her handle is "AuguryAside" and she's talking about OVERCOMING Death (a main locus of Time) could indicate a Healing role for all we know.

AA: Can thou feel that sensation churning within thee? AA: The power of thy necrotic liquid nubian destiny pulsing its way from thine inkstone, slowly redefining thy very being. AA: Thy Grand Metamorphosis has begun, and with it comes newfound power. AA: How glorious! AA: Truth be told, the thought alone sends a shiver down my visceral column! AA: As thy elder by several syzygic recitals I feel obligated to be involved in thy newest developmental period. AA: Yes, how gracious of me, I know. AA: Thou may feel free to rejoice as thee please. AA: However, merely watching thy ascension from seed to sapling has been reward enough for me.

So is the "Grand Metamorphosis" what turns their living headpiece from Squiddle to Squid? And what is this "power" it comes with, presumably something psychic or magical? Have the others properly transformed while Ly'lac is the youngest? Also, "necrotic liquid" is referred to, and there were those pronouncements of death earlier-- is the Grand Metamorphosis a sort of death and rebirth? Temporary death being integral to the species's maturation process seems like the thing that'd totally be Lalonde's jam.

AA: Our master and friend relationship has always been dear to me. AA: Oh, to be young again... AA: Bahaha! Oh, Ly'lac I jest, I merely jest! AA: (The jest being I see myself as thy master; in a way, we are each other's masters in this beautiful game we call friendship) <8{<:)

AA seems very neurotically obsessed with not being misinterpreted as having said something harmful while she's being overdramatic.

AA: Tangentially speaking, Isn't it odd how our age is measured in tidal turns despite it being a smaller unit of sublunary mensuration than syzygic recitals? AA: How annoying! AA: Nymph culture is quite frustratingly arbitrary at times.

She's COMPLAINING about temporal measurement, she's talking about age differences, she's dropped the word Time twice now... I'm definitely getting Time player vibes. But what kind?? (And if my first guesses are right is it Seer or Sylph, Seer or Sylph... she was deliberately characterized as a bugger/fusser/meddler in CG's first mention of her just like Kanaya used to be, and her neurotic self-corrections feel like Kanaya, and her excessive exposition-dumping feels Aranea... I do have to say, NOT AT ALL CERTAIN here but I think I am getting Sylph of Time vibes!)

AA: Anyway, take a gander outside and thou may see the gifts I've sent arriving. AA: One large and sentimental along with one small and practical. AA: I have no doubt they will please thee greatly. AA: They will assist thee in thy newest journey. AA: It's something I know thou hath wanted for possibly untold ages. AA: There is no need to thank me, however! AA: Such base indulgences are beneath me. AA: No matter how much thee prostrate thyself before me and finally profess thy undying appreciation for all I do, have done, and will continue to do for thee, it will not move me.

(I'll believe it when I see it!)

AA: I will however, require a hasty response. AA: I've found myself in a situation to which a violent resolution is approaching! AA: Hello. AA: Ly'lac. AA: Thou must respond soon. AA: There are motions we need to synchronize which require a dialogue to do so! AA: Dialogue meaning a series of words exchanged between two individuals. (As thee well know.) AA: Respond to my messages.

Seems like AA is running into some trouble/shenanigans typical of a pre-entry Player that she needs to urgently coordinate with others in order to Probably Not Die From.

-- auguryAside [AA] is now beholding gavageCunctation [GC] -- AA: I am watching thee from my orb now. AA: Come to the screen and respond to my messages. AA: Stop looking at those posters. They are no different from the last time thee saw them. AA: Ly'lac, I have need of thee. AA: Ly'lac, Of The Final Applause I require thy response immediately.

So she's doing some basic Beholding, but we can't quite see how Seery it might be and it looks more akin to a Server player's meddling through a Sburb interface. (So far, anyway.) Orb-based observation of others just seems like a common sort of magic that Nymphs would have.

Anyway she's trying to hurry someone up, very urgently! I wonder if hurrying people is something a Sylph of Time would do on the regular; usually I'd view it as more of a Maid cousin in "buying people time", but if an unavoidable time is approaching she might feel the need to usher people toward it, unless she's more of a Control class like a Witch (which she isn't as that's already taken by Damara)? Hmm. I might be reading too much into this.

AA: When I said there are countless forces working against my success I must admit I was disguising the truth! AA: That was actually a gross exaggeration!! AA: The forces are quite countable!! AA: The main force impeding my success is THEE!! AA: CAN THEE JUST SIT DOWN AT THEE FUCKING COMPUTER AND HELP ME? AA: FUCK YOU. -- auguryAside's [AA's] orb has been lost to her. --

WHOOPS. Shenanigans seem to have ensued in Ly'lac's absence. I wonder what Ly'lac could have possibly done to help from such a distance that would have averted whatever disaster has befallen AA and her orb? (Which may or may not be AA's whole-ass computer?)

===>

Now she's mad at you again. For no reason. This is clearly all happening because you are cursed.

Do your friends regularly fumble their Orbs? Pretty sure Ly'lac is just being depressed and fatalistic, absolving herself partially of blame by ascribing it to forces outside her control and her Powerlessness to influence them, sort of like how pre-entry Vriska Serket was ascribing stepping on D4s to 8ad Luck instead of a situation she COULD control by tidying up a bit. In this case, AA needed something urgent that only Ly'lac could provide in order to avoid <insert unknown shenanigans here>.

(Also, those suffering from depression may tend to lag in responding to their responsibilities, and oughtn't necessarily be held to the same immediacy demands as others.)

Maybe if you make good on at least one request she made of you she won't complain anymore. Actually, you know that is not true. She will complain so much more. You should go see what all this gift talk's about. Maybe you won't immediately destroy them. Knowing her, she probably hexed the package with an anti-piracy incantation so no one other than you could receive them.

Now when you say "Maybe you won't immediately destroy them.", you're talking about UNINTENTIONALLY destroying them, right?

Uh-oh, she's moving closer over to where she was blown through the wall isn't she.

Ly'lac: Check window.

Oh there's a wand on the floor; makes sense Nymphs would use wands or even needle-wands on a day-to-day basis. And outside:

Now THAT is a proper gift package, ensconced in the text color of the gifter rather than the recipient!

You take a look out the window and observe your surroundings. Using the pair of PANOPTICS that lay above your mantle, you take advantage of your innate ability to SEE THROUGH WATER. It is currently low tide, and your reclusehollow peeks safely above the cruel, electronic-shorting churn of the ocean below.

Her rooms must normally be sealed against the tides to keep her salvaged technology functioning, huh? (A neighbor's window vulnerable because of an explosion that was probably Ly'lac's fault.) No wonder other nymphs probably rely on less water-vulnerable magic-based computers.

You grew up in a SHUBHURB on the delta of the RIVER NIHIL in what is known as a CATACOMPLEX. It's where OLDER NYMPHS GO TO DIE. As many as can fit, at least.

Fitting for a Doom player, but does that count as a retirement community for genuinely aged Nymphs, or do young Nymphs getting old enough to reach their Great Metamorphosis count too, if that's a form of death?

It's one of the nicer ones too, most of them aren't this close to the surface. You arrived here in a matter typical of the myriad enigmatic and unsettling circumstances nymph children ordinarily arrive in their semiforever homes.

Ly'lac's (Doom-like) attachment to inorganic Satyr technology and salvage probably means she's the most likely Nymph to value surface-level living; her friends might be much more accustomed to an underwater lifestyle, for all we know.

===>

Oh my goodness, that's the same sort of knitted tentacle horror thing that young Rose had around to fuse to become Jaspersprite! Bringing them to life like this means she's very much living out many of her childhood fantasies with these Nymphs, in ways even clearer than we could already tell. Using godlike power to live out childhood fantasies that affect entire populations is a pretty clear indicator of the out-of-control selfish mindset that leads one to find comfort and fun in being a God ruling over their creations as Rose has become, if I'm phrasing that right... I'm getting Childlike Empress vibes.

I mean for goodness sake, it looks like Dirk and Rose might be having an honest-to-goodness boys versus girls contest with their respective species. What could be more childish than that?!

Looks like THE CARETAKER is receiving the package. She's not your caretaker... well, she is. But she's called that because she is the caretaker of the catacomplex's lifers. Adult nymphs often drop their epitaphs in favor of titles. You hope to do the same one day, as you AREN'T REALLY A FAN of yours.

Is she not a fan of the Ly'lac part because it's a flower and she's having a real checkered history with caring for flowers, or is she not a fan of the part she Hexed out of our view entirely that we'll one day be shocked to hear? I can't imagine her last name being THAT surprising, unless uhm... hmm. Unless maybe Rose and Dirk somehow put a little more of their friends' DNA into their chosen Players than we're aware of, their true last names indicating them as relatives of humans or trolls we know? Those names would be very un-Nymph-like and thus embarrassing, likely, and would provide a surprising eventual payoff once unhexed and revealed to the readers.

===>

THE CARETAKER attempts one of her classic CODDLETECHS, HEARTFELT GREETING.

That's fuckin' adorable.

===>

Not today.

Ah, typical contentious relationship with nominal parental figure of the average Sburb player, I see.

Given her handle, gavageCunctation, the retirement community's caretaker(s) probably ensure everyone is fed at certain times, and Ly'lac perchance abjures that, hence the strife and her choice of handle. Sometimes people who are really wallowing in their depression and intentionally isolating can't take a cheery social greeting well.

===>

Uh oh.

Uh oh. Are we hitting record paces of Guardian death here? Did AA's gift thoughtfully include explosives the Caretaker was too busy waving to properly catch, or was the Caretaker just not included in the anti-piracy hexes so she wasn't allowed to intercept the package for Ly'lac?

Doom and Time players are both liable by way of their aspects to unintentionally cause death.

Ly'lac: Check on Caretaker.

It appears she's INKED herself again.

Phew, that doesn't look fatal at least. Or if fatal, not permanently fatal. Likely that anti-piracy incantation to blame.