Quoted By:
MIKK. The more you hear about it, the more you’re convinced that nobody actually knows what the damn thing is! Only one constant comes up when you hear about this secretive sea-dweller:
They rule the Southern Seas… and people are spooked enough to give the whole cardinal direction a wide berth! What the HELL is its <span class="mu-i">DEAL</span> anyways!?
Something changes in Trier’s perpetual stare as the thought crosses your mind… right, Wizard. Dude’s probably perusing your thoughts like a Kiddie Menu at a family restaurant.
<span class="mu-b">”MIKK….”</span> He intones, his voice hosting a jarring amount of… reverence? <span class="mu-b">”prIMOrdIAL ChAOs… STiRrER OF minDS… OrDERrr’S AnTITHesSISss…”</span> He pauses for a moment as if the creature in question was sharing the room with you!
<span class="mu-b">”DANgerOUs.”</span>
‘Stirrer of minds’? Feels like everyone has psychic powers around these parts…
<span class="mu-b">”AsSEsSMEnT INCoRReCT: REpLACeS. reVISEs! REWoRKS…”</span> Mutters the mage with a scowl in his voice! “<span class="mu-b">EmERgED FRom the DEEpesT craCKs ANd CRaGS BeNEAth the blACK, YesSsSsss… COUlD NOt DefEND AgaINSt MenTAL InT-Tr-TRUsIONs DIsCOUrSEs… MAnY…”</span>
For a moment Trier holds stiller than a statue, his glowing eyes staring across the workshop like a lighthouse in the fog.
<span class="mu-b">”... SIlENt NOw. AsSESSMEnT: UnPREcIDEnTED AbsEnCEe… AddENDUm: ModIFicATIOnS NotED iN CoAsTAL PoPUlAtiON BY TekSOul scouTSSsS… RecOrdED RIsE in DOciLITy… AdDEnDUM: NoTEd HOsTIlITY DiRecTEd AT OutSIdDE EleMENTSsss… InCReASEd AggREssION BetWEEn LoCAL FactIONS. SElF-PResERvaTION of MOdIFIed: PriOriTY: MinIMUm.”</span>
You blink. So the people on the coast are, what, chill until strangers come by?
<span class="mu-b">”INDeeD… AsSEssMENt: DetriMEntAL tO TrAde anD RepuT-t-tTation. ProJEcTEd LONg-tERM SurVIvAL of ComMUniTIEs: UnLIkELY…”</span>
If what he’s saying is true, you muse as you gently drum your fingers against your tank, then what does MIKK gain from that? Granted, they sound like some kind of monster, but-
<span class="mu-b">”AsSESSmeNT disPLAyS IGnoRAnCE. TerM: ‘MonSTER’ INAccURaTE. AdDEnDUM: MIKK BeHAviOR SugGEsTs F-fOcUs On Sh-sH-SHOrT-TerM GAinS. LogIC InConcLUsiVe…”</span>
Yea, seriously… wait, what exactly did he mean by ‘modifications’? Is it just their behavior, or-
<span class="mu-b">”InVaSIVE AugMEnTAtiONS PReSSssENT In reTriEVeD BoDIES. FeW SImiLaRitIES to TradITIoNAL TechNolOgy. AdDENDUm: DaTA IMplIES unKnOWN OriGIN. PoTenTIAL unDoCUMEnTEd SenTIEnCE. ImpLiCaTIonS MyRiAD.”</span>
Trier’s eyes flicker with… <span class="mu-i">excitement?</span>
<span class="mu-b">”SolUTION: DisPATCH GReATER TEkSOUlS OnCE TranSAcTION IS AccEpTED. ObsErVe. CollECt. DIsSEct.</span>
A pause.
<span class="mu-b">”ZoRaL CHAnGeS. WE AdaPT. WE SubSIst. We GRoW.”</span>
