The Crystal Sslugs of the Test

[AIiCE]

"That's a good question. Here's another one: As a last resort, if Ravana invades the Gardens, and we can't stop him (which seems quite likely given the power of his scouts so far), could we trap him here? Disconnect the Gardens from the rest of the Diamond and leave him stranded? It seems to me that the real danger here is allowing him to spread across other facets."

[Yerkan of Elish]

"There are quite a few options of which I know.

"I am not so sure that so much depends on Ravana entering through the Rift. Perhaps he will simply send a scout through there, or an Artifact that will allow him entry. I am sure that he would not base so much of his plan on the location of his entry point. However, you do bring up a very good point, boy: most likely, Ravana cannot enter the Hamlet of Heroes (as a permanent Reality Revision, the Hamlet of Heroes and its rules are maintained by the Diamond Master). With enough Favor, we may be able to move the Hamlet or create a new one around any Rift that forms. This has little chance of success; we have only limited resources, and Ravana may be able to create new Rifts, essentially at his leisure.

"Trapping Ravana here is a reasonable option, and one that will allow us to continue in relative peace in whatever world we manage to find. Ravana is surely quite quick, however, and the collapse of a universe takes time. Most of the deities were capable of escaping the destruction of the Icy Wastes. A lot of powerful deities were also destroyed, so perhaps, just perhaps, we could even destroy Ravana in this way. Permanently.

"Ravana is intelligent. From everything that I know, including legends from distant worlds (including my own - the Daftar River Valley mentions Ravana in many of its legends, oddly without my interference), he is an excellent scholar. This is supported by the complex technology involved in the sslugs. I know nothing of his motives, but intelligent beings are capable of influence, and of manipulation. I'm not optimistic about us convincing him to become a pacifist, but we can learn, react, and trick him, unlike his mechanical sslugs.

"I have one last piece of advice for now. The Inclusion Tier is quite important here, for it alone has access to Ravana's little Rift. I for one will continue to keep close eyes on the Steep Wolf, the baby sslug, and the shadowy creature. Especially the shadow, which has unknown, and therefore dangerous, properties. So... Hero Deities, keep a close eye on that Rift, including whatever lies on the other side. If the other world begins to change, then we have warning that Ravana is there and working against it. Listen for his roar, feel for his presence. If nothing else, we should have immediate warning of any changes on that side. Knowledge is everything when, in terms of raw power, your enemy outclasses you."

[AIiCE]

"I'm trying to get a visual on the other side of the rift now. Fields and such pass though it just fine, so in theory I can receive transmissions from a probe.

"Viktor (Ptah named the wolf Viktor) wants to hunt something. I told him to come find you."

[Ptah]

"Erm, AIiCE, surely you didn't tell Viktor to hunt Yerkan. That /couldn't/ be what you meant. You're not always the most polite, but you can't be /that/ foolish."

[AIiCE]

"Of course not. Losing Yerkan at this juncture would be tactically disadvantageous. Besides, Yerkan invited me here. It would be discourteous to allow him to be eaten."

[Ptah]

"Right. I thought it would be prudent to make sure."

[Diamond Master]

The slimetrail carving becomes encysted with little transmitters, blinking mildly in the dusk. They all silently roar to life.

[Great Thrash]

AIiCE, your decision. Are we smashing these now before more can go wrong?

[Yerkan of Elish]

In the meantime, I will weave an illusion over the transmission. Showing and highlighting our failure against the sslugs, it shows us taking away everything precious from the Frosted Arboretum and vanishing through rifts across the Facet, convinced by the words of Ptah. Things descend into Chaos, showing that much of Ravana's work is already done, the Facet's patrons having already abandoned it to godless emptiness and worthlessness.

[Great Thrash]

@Steepest Durin, AIiCE, can you work on a technological assistance for those illusions?