Setta and the Search for Enlightenment

Setta shifted her fingers over the controls, directing the unwieldy beast a few degrees further through the aether. Flashes of light gave way to explosions of color, as beautiful and ephemeral as a passing butterfly - but Setta only stifled a yawn in response. Hours had passed since she'd last left the dock, and the strange brilliance of aetherspace had long ceased to impress.

The light vanished, replaced by a vast abyss peppered by the occasional flare of energy. Setta sat up in the pilot chair, her attention drawn to the boundary of the Void. She'd mapped almost every inch of aetherspace and been on countless treks through the planes: prime, ethereal, elemental, cosmic, and astral. And yet, being this close to the edge still held a tantalizing mystery. What lay beyond? Could any ship reach it? Only the Elder Gods had visited, but Setta was determined. Somewhere, within the Void, or close to it, lay Enlightenment.

Most believed 'enlightenment' a philosophical idea, a state of mind. Setta knew better, as did the master who had taught the Truth: Enlightenment was a place. All possibilities became a reality there, all streams of time converged. Once she found it...

A sharp jolt from outside the ship brought Setta back to the present reality. From the depths of the aether, something had emerged: A scyllus! Frantically, Setta directed the ship out of the path of the monstrous creature. She fell back in her seat, wincing as the ship shrieked in pain as the scyllus tore a gash into the hull. Setta was back at the controls in an instant. Her fingers blurred over the control sphere as the ship lurched, struggling to tread through the dense, black aether.

Losing track of her position in the mad dash, Setta was pleasantly surprised to spot a portal at the edge of the plane. With the scyllus still in pursuit, Setta followed the streams of aether and slipped inside.

Streams of golden light greeted Setta on the other side of the portal. Momentarily blinded, she urged the aethership to a screeching halt. Setta was accustomed to the ambient light of aetherspace, but somehow, this was different. Light bent and refracted in the swirling energy in ways wholy alien... and yet, oddly familiar to the explorer.

Enlightenment? Setta wondered, leaning forward in her eagerness, and drawn in by the peaceful euphoria of the unknown plane.

As her fingers slipped against the command sphere, the ship lurched again. Trying to maintain her position, Setta ended up over-correcting, sending the ship hurtling away into the aether. Caught in strands of slipstream, Setta could only watch helplessly as she careened further from her discovery.

Cursing the scyllus, and her misfortune, Setta finally managed to bring the ship to a halt, just outside of an aetherways dock. Confused, ship damaged, and needing to find her bearings, Setta docked the ship.

Beyond the viewing window, a world lay before her eyes, as beautiful and alien to Setta's eyes as the one she'd lost. Multifaceted creatures formed of shining crystal floated across jeweled walkways, mathematically perfect in sharp edges and form. They looked more to be constructs than living creatures.

Curious, Setta stepped outside, feet touching down against a polished walkway of jems. She knew this place, somehow, though she couldn't remember visiting before. The constructs were held in her memory, beyond Setta's own experiences. Maybe...

Further along the walkway, Setta spotted a sphere of perfect opal. The name came in a jolt of fire: Hallifax! The Continuum, Setta corrected herself immediately. So, within the Cosmic plane. Returning home would be easy enough.

Still, Setta lingered, fascinated by the plane, though aware of the risk of being caught. Ever since the Quarantine, Hallifax had denied even its allies entrance into its territories... and Setta was no ally. 

The glint of metal caught Setta's attention. Nearly buried within a mound of crystal was a device formed of silver and iron. It didn't appear to be a natural part of the plane, and wasn't anything she recognized from books or lectures, either. She knelt down and spotted a small metallic plaque at the bottom of the device: "Property of the Consortium."

Well, that's helpful, Setta thought, rolling her eyes. Reaching out a hand, she brushed her fingertips across the silvery surface. The silver device whirred to life, spinning in its pedestal before rising a few inches. It hovered above the crystalline ground, rotating in place.

Setta jumped back, catching herself at the very edge of the opal pathway. The silver device followed, spinning benignly in place as it inched toward the woman. She jumped up and started back toward her ship. Again, the silver device followed. Now frightened, Setta quickened her pace. Was it only monitoring her? Reporting back to the city? Preparing an attack? The uncertainty had Setta break into a run, stopping only once she reached the dock.

Still, the silver... thing... followed, spinning and floating along behind at an easy pace. As Setta started to enter the ship, it was right behind, intent on pursuit. "Go away!" she hissed, swatting at the silver device in frustration. Her fingertips brushed against the shiny surface again but did little to discourage the device.

Setta frowned, debating her next move. A shadow fell along the path. Feeling the rise of pin pricks along her spin, Setta turned her gaze up. A bipedal monstrosity stood in the walkway, an amalgamation of crystal and metal glowing in an eerie shade of bright orange. Gears whirred and clanked as it walked, giving the creature a swift, if awkward gait. Most disconcerting, two crystalline orbs were fixed on Setta.

It barked a sentence in an unfamiliar language with a voice reminiscent of metal cracking together. Setta backed up to the very edge of the dock, hands held in front of herself defensively. "I... I was just leaving, really!"

If the metallic construct understood the words, its crystal gaze gave no hint of it. The orange light within its chest shifted to dark blue as the air around it rippled with energy. Taking the hint, Setta dove back through the portal to her ship. Slamming a hand down on the controls, she rocketed out of the dock and back into aetherspace.

As the ship neared her own Cosmic plane - Vortex - Setta settled back into the command chair in relief. An odd humming sounded nearby. Turning, she spotted the silver device from the Continuum. Spinning like a top, and hovering mere inches away.

Setta blinked. The ship slid to a rest at the dock. The spherical device followed.



Setta worked her way down the flesh-lined falls of Vortex, crossing the portal back into Gaudiguch. The silver sphere followed her the entire way, bobbing through the as it tagged along after Setta like a balloon. 

She stepped out of the Flame, and caught her breath. No matter how many times she'd seen it, the beauty of that column of prismatic flame could bring tears to her eyes. Surprisingly, no one was around save for the Keeper, Mesadari. 

Moving a short distance away, Setta eyed the strange device. She tried pushing it away or moving above it, and then searching for any means of controlling the device. Nothing. And still it clung to her, stubbornly. If anything, the device had followed Setta even more closely since she'd returned to the city. Was it afraid?

Setta dismissed the odd thought with a smirk, then sighed. Her former master hadn't been seen in Gaudiguch in years. This left only one person she could go to for advice. Resigned, she trudged away from the Flame, and worked her way through the city. A path zigzagged through the center of Gaudiguch, known as the Dragon's Scar. 

Aedrasi was at her usual location, lounging on an obsidian rock outside one of the guildhalls. "Hello, mother," Setta greeted, without emotion. "I have a problem."

"Toss it in the Flame." The Dracnari woman had yet to look up from her place on the rock. Her amber scales gleamed in the sunlight as she lay on her back, gazing skyward. Only the occasional swish of her tail suggested she was still awake. "I find that resolves most problems."

"Not this one," Setta said, casting one eye at the silver device. It was still following. "I can't get rid of it."

Aedrasi lifted her head a few inches and quirked one eye at the device. "What IS that thing?"

"It's from Hallifax," Setta replied, and quickly explained her last trip through aetherspace, and how she'd ended up with the device.

"Hallifax," Aedrasi repeated, suggesting she was still stuck on the first word of Setta's story. The word spat from her lips like spoiled food. "Should probably take it to the Council then."

It was a reasonable suggestion. Still, Setta chewed her lip. "We might consider... intent and consequence. If I don't take it to the Council, then I was lost, and ended up with this thing by accident. If I do take it to them, then I was trespassing, and stealing from them." The larger concern was that the aethership Setta had taken belonged to the city, and she hadn't yet asked the Council for permission to borrow it. Still, the explanation sounded good. Like something Master Rashnar might say.

Aedrasi only chuckled and shook her head. "But you did steal that thing. Otherwise, you wouldn't have it now."

If Dracnari could bristle, Setta would have. "I'm not a thief!" she snapped, irritated by the smirk and the lack of concern in her mother's tone. "But if that's what you think, then I'll just... take it back to the Hallifaxians."

Aedrasi shrugged, settled back against the rock. "Do whatever you like, so long as it doesn't bother anyone else."

The phrase was ubiquitous in Gaudiguch, and Setta had heard it her entire life, from nearly everyone. And yet, when her mother said it, it never failed to annoy her. "Fine," she muttered. Even if Setta hadn't really meant the words, it wasn't a bad idea. Sometimes diplomacy was a more effective way to get information - at the least, they might tell her why the device had followed her. And maybe they'd allow her to retrace her steps out of the Continuum, to whatever plane she'd discovered before...

Only one problem: The device was gone. "Ah! Where did..." Setta started, searching frantically. She found it a short distance away, resting beside some of the flowers along the edge of the Dragon's Scar. No longer hovering, its once glassy, silver sheen was now a drab gray colour. 

Setta frowned, puzzling over this latest development. "What, are you broken already?" Extending one finger, she poked at the silver device. Immediately she jerked her finger back, feeling a few of her scales singe. "This wasn't..." Setta trailed off, noting that several of the plants the device was resting beside had started to wilt, or blacken. 

"Hrm," Setta mused, and sat beside the device to think. Ever since she'd brought it to Gaudiguch, it had clung more tightly to her side. And now the plants... and the burn... "Are you... hot?" she offered, feeling more than a little absurd asking this of an inanimate object.

It didn't respond, but the ruined plants still gave Setta a flash of inspiration. Exiting the garden, she ventured back to the market stalls. Minutes later, she returned with a small bottle of water. Setta poured a small amount into her palm. There was another moment of hesitation as she held her hand over the device, wondering if she was about to do something very foolish. Shrugging, Setta scattered the droplets over the device.

At the contact, new life returned to the device. It flickered back to a shiny silver colour and rose a few inches into the air. It hovered back over to Setta's side, like a lost puppy returning to its master.

Satisfied, Setta tied the bottle about her waist and rose to leave. She was no less confused about the nature of the device or why the water had worked - but at least she knew a tiny bit more about how to "control" it. 

It was enough. Setta headed east, following the slope down of the volcanic mountain and toward the city exit. Just before the gates, she spotted several citizens standing around. Most she knew by name even if she wasn't particularly close to them - Shaboji, Tatoka, among others. One, however, had her on guard immediately, keeping as much as she could to the shadows on the edge of the mountain path. Jaxsu.

Unfortunately, Jaxsu spotted Setta as she was passing out of the gates. He beckoned to her with a cheerful wave and started toward her. "Hey, Setta! You're back!"

"Back?" Setta asked, with feigned ignorance, fighting to keep the grimace out of her expression. "No... I was just leaving..."

Jaxsu dropped an arm around her shoulder and led Setta just out of earshot of the others gathered at the city exit. "Really?" He asked, his pleasant tone still holding. "So you've been in the city all this time?"

"Yep, absolutely," Setta answered.

"And there's no way I'll check on any of the city's aetherships to find the points changed or that they're crawling with parasites chewing on the modules," adding, after a pause, "...again?" Jaxsu's tone was decidedly less pleasant.

"Um... look," she started, edging away from him. "If there's any parasites or settings changed, I can..."

"What in the name of Lord and Lady Mysrai is that?" Jaxsu interrupted, spotting the silver device floating behind Setta.

Setta immediately moved to block Jaxsu's view of the device, hoping the 'Property of the Consortium' plaque wasn't visible. Better to toss it into the Flame than let the slimy Aslaran take it. First time she'd met Jaxsu, Setta decided she didn't like cats. "It's mine, uh... a pet, sort of," Setta started, "Something I bought off a gnome. It just... follows me. Cute, right?" she asked, forcing a smile.

Jaxsu's yellow eyes narrowed, glancing between the device and Setta. "What gnome?"

"The one with a shop. Anyway... of course I'll fix the ships, I just have to run a quick task first."

He shrugged, and Setta squirmed away, out of research. "Well... about that," Jaxsu started, "If you want to be of use to the city, you know, for once, you could dedicate some funds to increasing the size of hull. Safer for you, good for Gaudiguch. Everyone wins!"

"Oh come on! I don't have that kind of gold!"

"I know, I know," Jaxsu nodded, clicking his tongue in sympathy. "No one does, these days. But you put me in a terrible position, Setta. I don't want to have to report you to the Council..."

Setta fumed, silently. If emotions could show in her scales, they'd have shone a brighter crimson hue than the flowers of the fire plane. In the end, Setta only swallowed it. "I'll... see what I can do," she muttered, through clenched teeth.

Jaxsu nodded, flashing a smile in her direction. "Smart girl. Enjoy your, er, task." Turning away, he cast one last glance at the silver device floating in the air behind Setta. "How is that 'cute'?" she heard, as Jaxsu turned and walked back into Gaudiguch.

Sighing, Setta lifted her gaze. Even from this distance, iridescent hues of flame streaked across the sky from the Flame, rainbows of light and colour illuminating the city. Setta turned to the east. Far in the distance, she could barely make out the outline of a city of crystal, floating in the sky above the Basin.

"Well..." Setta remarked, with a nod to the silver device beside her. "On the upside... maybe there will be a reward for returning you? Let's hope."

They headed east.