28 January 2023

So, I actually went back to Godhunter for a bit. I had some ideas on how the Seeress questline might progress, and wanted to get a feel for the place, if I ever do get around to writing that one. There’s a lot of options.

I think the funnest part about these, even when I first started, was seeing how “impossible” I could make it feel - take the ordinary weaknesses of a power, such as “checkmating” someone with foresight, and block those one way or another - and then figuring out how the Reaper would defeat them anyway. So, yeah. There are plans in the works. It’s just a question of if I’m in the write frame of mind to tackle it, and no other, more pressing bits I want to write.

I’m also quite fond of this format of “discovery”. Put myself there, and see what happens. This trick obviously won’t work for everyone; some people prefer to put a bit more distance, and take a much broader look at everything and how the pieces fit together, and there are a lot of advantages to that approach. But this, it just feels fun, and still helps me practice my narrative writing skills, as well.

The first thing that strikes me as I arrive in the main thoroughfare of the Seeress’ city is how bright it is. Not at all what I might initially expect of an exploitive, tyrannical god-queen. The street is wide, probably the equivalent of six lanes of traffic, complete with a median in the middle featuring trees planted at regular intervals.

On either side, the buildings are tall, probably six to seven stories, and every other building is draped with a long, teal banner depicting a single, open eye.

The road leads to a large pyramid, the top third made of glass, overlooking the city. Rather than head there, though, I turn off onto one of the side streets. I’m guessing the underbelly of the city could tell me a lot… if I can even understand enough of how that works to envision something semi-plausible.

A few random twists and turns later, and I find myself in a cramped alley, with pipes holding who knows what running into the buildings on either side. I find an old blind beggar huddled away in one of the corners.

In a soft and soothing tone, I say “Hey, there, old-timer.”

His head snaps my direction. When he opens his mouth to speak, I notice he is missing many of his teeth. “H-have you come to take me away?”

“No. I’m new around here, actually.” I pull out a loaf of bread from the ether and hand it to him. “Here.”

It takes him a moment for him to realize what it is, but when he dows, tears start streaming down his face, and he digs in.

I wait for him to finish eating. “What can you tell me about this city? What should I watch out for?”

The beggar hesitates for a bit, then points a trembling finger. “Don’t go that way; Her Ladyship has it blocked off. I don’t know what it is but they’re not very nice with anyone as gets too close.” He turns and points another way. “Madame Gaskal lives that way. She’s kind. Her words are gruff, but if you ever need help, she’s the one.”

He pauses, and in a whisper he adds, “And never go out on the main road on a Tuesday. That’s when Her Ladyship goes on her grand procession.”

I raise my eyebrow. “Grand procession?”

He nods, and opens his mouth to explain, when we hear a fanfare of trumpets. “There it is!” he exclaims. “Quick, hide!” He squeezes himself as tightly into the corner as he can.

Curious. For me, it’s a Saturday. The benefits of mental travel, I suppose. I thank the man, and with a snap of my fingers I reappear on the roof of a building overlooking the main thoroughfare.

The Seeress sits on a palanquin carried by eight tall, bronze-skinned men. Her skin is like copper, with wavy, raven-black hair falling about her shoulders. Her clothes are white, as is the veil used to cover her face.

I notice that the palanquin is decorated with numerous eye motifs. I wonder if that plays into the Reaper’s hunt at all? Rather than killing herself, or yielding to the Reaper directly, does she put out her own eyes to keep from seeing anything? …Somehow, that idea makes the whole thing even more macabre, and not an avenue I necessarily want to pursue.

Behind her comes a procession of priests and priestesses, all wearing blindfolds. Each blindfold has a single red eye painted on it. Kind of like the Sheikah or Yiga clan symbols, only without the teardrop. It does make me wonder; are each of these priests and priestesses blind? If they are, did that happen naturally, or did the Seeress blind them herself?

As the procession makes its way down the street, I have an epiphany. One of the things she’s doing here is to collect more servants to replace any she’s lost. What happened to those, then? How harsh is she with the servants’ failings? I already noticed on the main street that everything is very orderly; every tree, building banner, etc. all must go in its exact place. What if she gets harsh when one of the servants disturbs that? She wouldn’t even need to kill them every time; she might be satisfied blinding them. Then she could reassign them somewhere else, or just cast them out of her palace/temple/pyramid. I wonder what that old beggar did to earn her wrath?