#the oculus

The Grand Relics

The Phoenix Fire Guantlet | The Oculus | The Gaia Sash | The Philosopher’s Stone | The Temporal Chalice | The Animus Bell | The Bulwark Staff | The Light of Creation

Happy Story and Song release day!

Don’t keep your quaestor waiting…

As agents of the Oculus of her Truth, quaestors represent the inquisitorial wing of the Equestrian judicial system. They make sure all legal proceedings are done correctly, checking in on both the litigant’s and defender’s side in a case. They follow up with witness statements, recheck evidence or even investigate further for the court. In cases of the state litigant, they are the judge’s representatives. They might even represent the defense when matters are much too serious or sensitive for the general advocacy, thus making those cases fully inquisitorial as opposed to adversarial.

It is said that the quaestor’s role in public life extends far beyond the court, that the Oculus sends their agents on information gathering missions outside of any given case. Or that the Oculus might be building cases against the public before handing these off to a relevant deputized authority. Even worse, some say that quaestors don’t always wear their purposefully loud attire when on duty, instead walking among us in everyday clothes. Agents of the hidden Oculus, a much larger entity watching an Equestrian’s every move with the help of vast networks of informants...

And just in time for lunch as we stepped into the Cavern Restaurant, Singapore’s first and only restaurant in a cave setting inspired by the Mulu Caves in Sarawak. The place is already packed with diners but kudos to the wait staff for getting tables for our big group of nine people. The dining hall is dimly lit with LED table lamps so ordering took some time to complete as some of us cannot see clearing in the dim lighting.

There are plenty of places you can find pictures and clips of multitudes celebrating Pride in New York City. But I want to show that the commemorations are not limited to parades and venues associated specifically with the LGBTQ+ community.

This is a photo of Lower Manhattan from the New Jersey side of the Hudson. Despite it being overexposed (sorry!), the mast of WTC-1 can clearly be seen lit up in Pride colors. The mast is the highest point in NYC.

Below is the Oculus. It's a transit hub and upscale shopping center. Three subway lines are directly accessible from the Oculus and another is sort of accessible from it; that doesn't include PATH which is a separate subway system connecting several points in Manhattan with a number of communities in nearby New Jersey. The color lighting may need work, but the flags leave no doubt what the occasion is.

Finally, the overhead information display on a bus in Brooklyn. Such displays are on a majority of MTA buses. They show the position of the bus and a list of the next few stops. They also highlight city events and transit changes.