[i]Sancta Civitas[/i]

It was almost finished. The mighty sailing vessel, the designs of which burned in Tadiza’s mind like an angry god trying to break into reality, was almost finished. It had two decks, thus creating a relatively safe internal area, and sticking out of either side of the ship were two rows of oars, one atop the other. It was the largest and grandest ship Sancta Civitas’ shipyards had ever produced, dwarfing them in terms of size, capacity and rowing power. Even its sails were grander, its mighty masts towering above all others, each end of the beams bound by ropes that spooled down to the deck which allowed them to be directed. 

There was little else to be done, she knew, as she carved the Figurehead, the face of the ship in the image of [url=https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/divinus-mk4/images/0/0a/Kraken.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20200307002143]symbol[/url] she did not know nor understand, but which she knew was important. Already the winds gently whipped around it as they did the figureheads created by the Emissary, but this one would be something more. It meant something more. 

The Inscrutable Inventor knew in the back of her mind that once she finished carving the figurehead it would all be over. Her work would be complete. The rush of inspiration would die. She soldiered on regardless, she couldn’t help it, couldn't stop. She had to see her work complete no matter what. 

Others, however, had different plans. The Builder-Priests had seen this play out once before and refused to be caught flat footed again when Tadiza’s Inspiration died and the plans for how to create the wondrous vessel died with her. For the most part they’d been content to shadow her, a small story of priests watching her every move, examining how she and those caught in her spell had created each and every facet of the ship. It had worked so far, they had compiled their findings onto stone tablets that they could use to build yet more craft, but this final part of the ship had them stumped.

“It is like what we make but there's something. Something more”, admitted a carpenter who had produced numerous enchanted figureheads for the city’s vessels.

“I agree,” conquered an Akua Servent called Velnik. The Mage was for all intents and purposes an utterly hairless night elf who lacked the distinctive fonds of the elf clad likely due to a goblin clad ancestor somewhere in his line, “Whatever she is producing I do not understand. I do believe the carving itself is a form of Somatic magic however. Her motions are inefficient and have that artful grace to them that the non verbal spells in The Library knows have.” 

“Can you replicate?” asked the aging goblin woman, clad in a black toga and wearing a crown adorned with a replica of Artifex’s horns, who was leading the builder-priest’s observation team.

The Servant shook his head, “no mam, and you’re running out of time.”

“I know child” she told the Akua, who was already older than she would ever live to, before coming to a decision “The ship is a wonder even if we install a mundane windcaller figurehead and who knows when inspiration will strike her again? The risk of ruining the enchantment is worth what you might learn”

She beckoned to a pair of royal guards she’d enlisted and pointed to the Tadiza “Take her. Gently”

“Of course your artfulness” one of the pair of Mantarin woman replied before the two approached the inventor. The two hulking armored ladies stepped around either side of Tadiza’s buzzing wings and grabbed her by the shoulders simultaneously.

“Ah! oh. You scared me. Go away I’m in the middle of some very delicate work” she complained, before squirming futility in their grip.

“Sorry, but you need to come with us” one told her, before they both pulled her off away from the nearly completed figurehead.

“No. Wait. You can’t! I need to finish. Help. Help me!” she yelled to the various workers who had been aiding her in her work.  They looked over at her in alarm, but the goblin priest stepped past her, telling them that “All is well. She committed no sins. Will released soon. This all part of Artifex’s plans,” specifically directing these words at the Vespain woman’s sisters who had wound up working on the project. 

It was not they who rushed to her aid however, placate as they were by the words of the priest, but instead a goblin captain, three workers and a builder-priest, all of whom had been exhibiting lesser degrees of the same uncanny abilities as the Inventor. The quintet of minions pushed their way out of the crowd, clamoring for her release and echoing her urgency that the work needed to be done now. The builder-priest would have none of it telling them that “you stay till return. Artifex wills it”  

“He wills that this task be done!” retorted the Mantarin builder-priest among Tadiza’s minions who loomed over the goblin “and we need her, the vision of his glory burns bright in her”

“We take her. Holy work is to be done. This been agreed by council.”

“Why were we not included? Are Tadiza and I not also two of his many hands upon Gablar?”

“You here. You not right of mind. Stay. It is ordered.” the goblin commanded the comparatively titanic Mantarin, before turning her back on her and moving to join those currently dragging Tadiza away. There was a tense few moments as the Mantarin physically vibrating on the spot as she glared down at the goblin builder-priest walking to rejoin her fellows and the captured Inventor, the other four minions standing tense at her side. But she did not make a move, for in the end her loyalty to her loyalty to her faith blunted the power the Inventor’s mania held over her.

The pair of royal guards dragged the Vespian though the streets as she raged and cried at them to let her return and complete her work, but after a certain amount of time she gew sullen and instead began to moan about them ruining her work and how much she’d need to redo. Her demands were sternly declined. Instead the builder-priests dragged her to an Ant drawn cart, which took her and them up into the palace district, and then to The Library. 

The institute of hub of magical learning was abuzz with activity as Tadiza was pulled inside, flanked by Velnik and the gaggle of Builder-Priests. Citizens and professional mages alike could be seen perusing the shelves full of magic literature, listening to lectures, discussing spell-craft or even practicing non destructive spells with the slab sat in front of them. The commotion caused by only drew a few curious glances at first as Tadiza was brought to a section of the library dedicated to the recording of new magics.

“Now. This important. You show The Library magic you inscribing.” the goblin builder-priest ordered her.

“No. You already ruined it. Just let me go back!” Tadiza yelled at her

“Once spell documented you may go child” the goblin explained calmly

“Fine!” Tadiza replied, before, still held tightly in place by the guards, making a grab for one of the glowing motes in the library.

The light did as it was meant to, forming into a stone tablet in her hands which Velnik the Servant eagerly grabbed as soon as it was finished. He rapidly read it over and then shook his head, “It’s like the druid mural. It just says how to become what she is, not how to do the specific thing she was working on. It even says here that it’s not something she can actively decide to do. She needs to be ‘Inspired’ to do anything and then once she’s done the knowledge just slips away. Interesting, very interesting, but not what we were aiming to record.”

The builder-priest sighed, before instructing Tadiza to “Do again. Focus on figurehead child.”

“I am! I can't think about anything else!” Tadiza screamed back at her, grabbing another mote, and yet this too produced the same description. As did the next.

Her screaming and yelling had brought the rest of the library to a standstill. Most simply watched, struck by bystander syndrome. In the end it was a painter who barreled out of the newly constructed section of the library containing the Walls of Infinity to complain about the ruckass. 

“Be quiet.” the goblin artists demanded, jabbing a paint mixing stick at them “making happy paint. you ruin my joy with noise!”

Everyone shut up and stared at the fuming goblin. Then Velnik had an idea. “Yes yes, this is perfect we can still get something out of her. Expect this I mean” he said before shoving the tablet about Inventors into the priest's hands and walking over to the painter “You can make paint out of anything, correct? Even abstract things like thoughts and emotions?”

“Seems so? Expose ink to thing. It becomes like thing” the goblin agreed, still rather angry “what to you?”

“We’re going to need some rope” 

[hr]

“Was mad. But this cruel” the painter admitted as Tadiza squirmed and raged in the chair she’d been tied to, surrounded by bowls of ink in the vault used to store that paint. She’d been tied there for quite some time, which had allowed the ink to soak up her Inspired mental state, or so they hoped. Several of those present were starting to regret the entire ordeal, but they’d come too far now to stop.

“Must be done now?” the builder-priest said, to which the artist nodded, before asking “Who test?”

“Well it was my idea” Velnik said, taking a paintbrush and dipping it in the ink “I just apply this to my body and it’ll work?”

“Yes. Briefly. We trying make better ways-” the painter was explaining when Velnik dabbed the ink on his forehead. He stopped explaining because the elfine Servant promptly decked the builder-priest in the face and then used magic to form a trio of stone knives out of thin air which he fired at the three sets of rope holding Tadiza captive, expertly severing each and every one.

“Be free, free! ah ha ha ha!” he laughed as the wasp took off and bolted past the group, before coming to his senses just in time to be tackled by one of royal guards.

Once the dust settled and things had been worked out the group went racing after the Vespian. 

“There was some of it in there, I could feel the ‘Inspiration’, but it was distinctly her Inspiration and it was clouded by the anger and frustration” Velnik yelled as they raced through the streets. It was obvious where Tadiza was going and in quick succession they traveled by ant back down to the docks where the Vespian Inventor was yelling at her minions and the workers to start tearing out parts of the ship. She completely ignored the arrival of her kidnappers, having become deeply re-enraptured with her project.

“So. It wasn't all in the figure head. Interesting” Velnik noted as the ship’s mast crashed down onto the dockside, while the builder-priest cupped her head in her hands and mourned all the progress they’d just lost.

“All for nothing” she groaned 

“Well, we could always try pulling it directly out of her right?” Velnik said as he glanced at the painter for confirmation, 

“Well. yes. create also destroy” the painter reluctantly explained 

“No. Done enough damage.” the builder-priest said, her own actions having grown nauseating to her in the stark glare of hindsight and at the sight of the destruction it had caused.

“Could bring ink out here. Absorb while working?” the painter suggested, “much less cruel”

“Ah but wouldn't that have the same issue of contamination?” Velnik replied

“From sun. Working spirit. Sea air. Not rage. Less distracting?” the painter replied

“Hmm. perhaps. There must be a way to filter the ink. Get exactly what you want” Velnik thought, rubbing his chin, “but even if we do that, we’ll only be able to get this servile effect.”

“Will Inspire her again?” the builder-priest asked, 

“Maybe? She seems to be a new breed of Servant or witch. Only specific people can do what she does” 

“If so, do it. Get something out of ordeal” 

Which was how Tadiza ended up spending the entire rebuilding process being followed around by people carrying bowls of ink, much to her annoyance.

[hider=summary]
Tadiza the Vespian Inventor from Sancta Civitas is nearing the completion of her second project, a mighty bireme ship. While working on the vessels figurehead, carved in the symbolic image of Klaar, she is observed by a number of builder-priests and Velnik, a servant. They have been meticulously documenting how the ship was built, but are failing to understand how she is enchanting the figurehead. 

The leader of the build-priest party orders that she be interrupted in her work. Tadiza’s minions, led by another builder-priest, object. When commanded to stand down however their loyalty to the church overruled the influence Tadiza’s gift has over them. 

The inventor is then dragged to The Library where they attempt to get it to document the knowledge of how she was enchanting the ship. Instead they get a tablet explaining how Inscrutable Inventors work. Tadiza’s yelling and demanding to be allowed to return to the ship to keep working eventually draws the ire of a goblin painter working in the new ink focused wing of the library. His appearance Velnik (the Servant) to suggest trying to record her inspired mental state in the ink instead. 

They do so, but when Velnik tests the ink he instead becomes a minion instead of an inventor and slo inherits the rage, frustration and desire to escape that Tadiza feels. While in this state he frees Tadiza, who escapes and runs straight back down to the docks to keep working. 

The priests, servant and painter all catch up with here there to see that she has ordered large chunks of the ship to be redone along with the figurehead in-order to properly enchant the vessel. The priests bemoan the destruction they have caused while Velnik suggests they draw the Inspiration directly from the Inventor. As this would effectively rob her of that mental state they reject this, and instead resolve to follow her around with ink to passively absorb the Inspired state, even if this means it won't be as pure, so that they might try and use it to re-Inspire her later nce they understand both her and the ink better.
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11k chars
The library +5
Servants +5
[@Legion02]
Inventors +5 (total 10)
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