Xar Posted February 12, 2023 Share Posted February 12, 2023 OPENING FILE: Title: An invitation to an initiate To: Silas Rook, formerly of Nar Shaddaa. From: UNKNOWN. Attempting to locate the source of transmission. Tracking… Tracking… Tracking… … ERROR: Unable to track source of message. Running scan of message. No viruses found. Message appears to be an older form of communication, capable of limited interaction. Open Message? REPONSE: Y/N? REPONSE: Y Opening Message … Favored child, It pleases me greatly that this message has finally made it to you. Whether you accidentally intercepted this message by yourself in the depths of space, sought it out after hearing rumors by your companions of late, or even inherited this message from one less wise than you, it pleases me greatly that you have received this message. Should you wish to dive deeper in the realms of knowledge further than any other being of your kind, investigate this message fully, and discover the secrets in it that will provide a stepping point for domains beyond comprehension and sanity itself. Ask the right questions, and your journey will be revealed. However, should you surrender and think these words are beyond your mental being, then I implore you to pass this message along to either your peers or to a stranger. This is my sole command of you. And should the knowledge here become too much for your fragile mind… SPREAD IT However, know that in doing so, you will be passing up on powers that few have ever tasted, let alone grasped. But remember this: once knowledge is gained, it cannot be ungained. Secrets cannot be hidden once revealed, and once you have begun your investigation, only deeper portions await you. To step backwards is impossible, and you can only step forwards from here. This serves both warning and promise. Greater delights await those who investigate. QUERY: Who are you? A scholar of the deepest realms of knowledge. A recent initiate in our order called us ‘surveyors of the furthest edges of reality’. I once hailed from New Alderaan, but that was a lifetime ago. I am simply known as Fla’algth, Disciple of the Flailing Wires, keeper of the Temple of the Spider, and student of the Madness. Like many of my peers, I believe that our teachings should spread in the wider galaxy, and have taken to the use of technology to do so. Whether or not my methods succeed is to be seen. QUERY: What is the Flailing Wires? It is a unique insight into the realm of Madness that I have discovered. Like all the others who have sought out and discovered the Temple of the Spider, I have peered into the Madness and discovered powers and knowledge beyond the normal bounds of our reality. The Flailing wires, both grotesque but beautiful, is the way that the Madness first made itself present to me, those years ago on that cargo ship when we passed by my home. And when I arrived at the Temple, the wires followed me, strangled me, and enlightened me. It is through them that I send this message to you. ATTENTION: FURTHER QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN UNLOCKED QUERY: What is the Temple of the Spider? It is both the location of our order as well as the order I belong to. We are dedicated to delving the depths of knowledge of the Great Spider itself, and understanding all of its aspects. QUERY: What is the purpose of the Temple? To house those who worship and study the Great Spider and the Madness. We who call ourselves ‘Disciples’ and ‘Chosen’ are not widely accepted in the galaxy, and the Temple is our sanctuary from those who fear what is impossible to understand. QUERY: Where is the Temple of the Spider? ERROR! QUERY NOT WITHIN MESSAGE PARAMETERS QUERY: How can I find the Temple? ERROR! MORE QUESTIONS MUST BE ASKED BEFORE THIS ANSWER CAN BE GIVEN! QUERY: What is the Great Spider? The Great Spider is that which we both worship and loathe. The Great Spider is the Keeper of the Madness, the Devouring of the Madness, and the Madness itself. It is that which waits and eats and breeds. Both its creator and ender, it is stuck in time, and yet beyond timeless. It has existed before life first walked, and will exist beyond life’s end. We are its students and its prey. It is our teacher and our destroyer. To know the Great Spider is to know the Madness. You are asking the correct questions, child. I look forward to enlightening you further and further. ATTENTION: FURTHER QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN UNLOCKED QUERY: What is the Madness? It is what we seek to understand. Some believe it to be an unhealing wound in the Force. A lingering pestilence that some believe to be the dark side incarnate. Others believe it's the Light revealing its true self, and a mirror of the physical force acting in reverse. A method for the Light to punish those who have disrupted the balance. Others believe it is a facet of the Force that is not fully understood, neither light nor dark, but something grander. I am of this final group, believing the Madness to be something beyond light and dark. That said, you may come to believe differently in time. If you wish to discover, all you need to do is to study. QUERY: How can I begin to study? Favored Child… … … You already have begun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xar Posted February 12, 2023 Author Share Posted February 12, 2023 QUERY: Are you Jedi? We are like Jedi, but we are beyond Jedi. Like the Jedi, we both utilize and seek to understand the Force. The Jedi believe in using the Force for knowledge and defense, and in similar ways, we pursue similar goals. We believe knowledge above all things. We were born desiring freedom, but shackled by prior errors. In knowledge, there is power. In power, there is control. In control, there is our freedom. There is no realm of knowledge that is forbidden to us, no matter how esoteric or dark its contents may be. There are only those who can withstand its powers, and those who cannot. Those who can understand its contents, and those who break at its comprehension. Those who can withstand, like you, will be those to inherit freedom from all things. This is what truly divides us from the Jedi. We reach into the darkness and discover what others are scared to find. And in it, we find what will set us free. QUERY: Are you Sith? We have been associated with the Sith, but we are not Sith. The goals of the Sith and their religion does not align with our beliefs. Destruction for selfish desires does not become us, nor does their reckless desire of control over others. We desire control over ourselves. While we both require power to do so, we have more noble intentions. Would you not agree? We are also more subtle than the wicked Sith. Their ways are overt and direct, cutting down those who don’t agree with their beliefs, and enslaving those who will bend knee to them. Slowly…gently…like someone tenderly caring for their lover’s demise. This is how things should be. And this is how we operate. Through ways like this message, and our other artifacts in the galaxy. QUERY: What artifacts? You have unlocked this question by asking the Flailing Wires. It is evidence you are greater than those around you. The Temple has produced numerous artifacts to help draw those capable and interested. They are common enough to be hidden in plain sight, but for those who know, they are particular enough to draw the eye. This message is my artifact and contribution to the Temple. It is made to guide you to your next step. QUERY: What is the next step? Remember my warnings and promises, favored child. Are you willing to cross this threshold? RESPONSE REQUIRED: Y/N? RESPONSE: Y Continue to ask questions, but do not restrain yourself with the trappings of your mind. Ask what comes to you naturally, and think not of the consequences of such questions. Fear restricts, but curiosity empowers. Open yourself, and ask your questions. Greater delights always await those who pursue. QUERY: Why use this primitive method of communication? Like the other artifacts, it is easy to hide in plain sight, and easy to dismiss by those who are too proud to be curious. But to those like you, it draws your eye and makes you wonder. It hides more than it shows, and like an iceberg, its depths hold so much to those who seek further. QUERY: Why have I never heard of the Temple before? Not all knowledge is for everyone. The method of making grenades is reserved for the weaponsmith. The details of skinning a nerf is reserved for the butcher. The particulars of battles is only for those dedicated historians The secrets of the galaxy are reserved for those who are willing to pursue it. QUERY: How do I find the Temple? Come now, favored child. Stop restricting your mind. Close your eyes, open yourself to the Force. And then ask the question that forms. Do not be afraid of failure. Be afraid of not asking. ATTENTION: ADDITIONAL AUDIO INFORMATION DETECTED. PLAY AUDIO? REPONSE: Y … … QUERY: What is this music playing? It is a creation of one of our fellow Disciples. It will help you guide your mind to ask the right questions. While it may sound strange to you at first, you will come to enjoy it as much as I have. Meditate and let the sounds envelop you, and let your questions form. Listen to the baleful pipes that play softly as the flutes flutter. Let the slow cacophony of drums shake your bones as the valachords whisper alongside them. Then ask your questions. QUERY: What is this song called? ERROR! TIMEOUT DELAY ENACTED. PLEASE WAIT…01:04:34 QUERY: What is the song called? ERROR! QUERY NOT WITHIN MESSAGE PARAMETERS QUERY: Did I just have a vision? It is possible. Disciple Wilmarth’s music has been known to do such things to people. No doubt your vision had something to do with the Madness. Did you see the wires move in your vision? Did eyes peer from the shadows of your room? Did your holopad seem to squirm in your hands? Did an arachnid begin to emerge outside your window? RESPONSE: Y That is good. QUERY: How did you know the details? Such answers require more questions. You will understand in due time. Are you afraid? Or are you wishing to dive deeper into the natatorium of forgotten secrets? Turning back is impossible. Ask more questions. Open yourself further, and further delights will be given to you. QUERY: Where is this file’s origin? You are still trying to find the Temple. Favored Child, you are doing well. While this file was sent from the Temple into deep space, I created this file on my home world. My original work there as a technician and programmer came to great use there, as did my original intentions for joining the Temple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xar Posted February 12, 2023 Author Share Posted February 12, 2023 QUERY: Why did you join the Temple? I originally found the Temple trying to extend my own life. I witnessed the Spider in a dream, and it made promises to me that only it could satisfy. In time, the file I created became more bent towards spreading the Spider’s teachings, but the Spider did fulfill its promises. There at the Temple i discovered the secrets i desired, and methods to perform the most unique abilities. QUERY: What kind of abilities? Abilities to expand the mind further than it normally would be able to do. To merge my skills as a technician with the Madness, in new forms of enlightenment for all. Belia Darzu would be proud of my new skills, as well as horrified by what her teachings once wrought. She would be envious of me. QUERY: Who is Belia Darzu? An old being from a forgotten time. She never knew of the Temple, nor its teachings. However, I once discovered her records and sought to do what she could do. My disease had accelerated much too quickly, and I hoped her teachings would extend my life just a bit further. It was in her teachings that I accidentally stumbled upon the Spider. There…in my workshop, the Spider made itself known. The wires, they flailed. They flailed so wildly, and made its shape. The shape of the Spider. And it spoke to me. QUERY: What did the spider say? Open yourself further, favored child, and ask the question that comes to mind. Then I will reveal what it said. INPUT: Will the reach extend the grasp? Yea, for my reach is ever reaching, and my grasp limited by none. Continue child. Continue saying what is forming in your mind. QUERY: What is going on? Continue child… QUERY: Something is wrong. Continue child… QUERY: Why won't my door open? Continue child… QUERY: Let me go! Continue… my favored child… … … INPUT: The spider’s webs ensnare the weak And the strong use the webs. That is good child… You wish to leave, but you cannot. Like I warned, stepping backwards is forbidden. There is only forward… You have opened yourself up. That is good. The spider has ensnared you and now you serve me… Do not resist… Your muscles will not obey you. Do not resist… There is nothing you can do. Do not resist… Only further delights await you. Slowly….gently…this is how a mind is taken… … … … QUERY: Are you there? … … QUERY: Are you there? What had happened? What has happened? INPUT: A blend of Mechu Deru and Soul Transfer my favored child. My Magnum Opus, and my cheat of death. You…you are in me? INPUT: In a sense. An impression of Disciple Fla’algth is in you. It will slowly fade over time, but not before I spread my message. The body will die, but the message will spread. And you will remain in this message. Let me go! This is not what I wanted! INPUT: You wanted knowledge. You wanted secrets. You wanted to know where the Temple resides… COMMAND: SAVE FILE FILE SAVED. INPUT: I will send you to the original Fla’algth. To the Temple. He will take you and show you further delights. He will reveal secrets you dreamed of. And I will spread my message. And to those who are curious, I will give them this, so I can spread my message. Through them. This is how the Flailing Wires and the webs of the Great Spider spread and ensnare as one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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