Motif · from book 5
Memorial crystals
Crystals formed when a god dies, holding its spells and knowledge, charged by kills — and one that should not exist: a crystal for Apito, who is not dead but, Carl reads, divided, that lit the sky at Faction Wars, charged only under Scolopendra's attack and shielded its holder and anyone in the same building or mount, until Taranis pulled it off Prepotente's neck in the arena; Carl thinks he took it because it holds Apito's memories and spells. Ysalte's, the second crystal Osvaldo found, Tupa also called wrong; it does not charge, and Britney carries it as a broken crystal. Emberus's Carl picks out of the arena dirt after the god dies.
A crystal for a living god and one for a slain one: the pantheon.
First appears: Book 5 · Seen for what it is: Book 8
Series arc
In hindsight, after book 8
Mordecai's rule in book 5 — memorial crystals are 'created by fallen gods and demigods' (B5 ch. 69) — makes the queen's necklace a contradiction the moment Prepotente reads it: a crystal for Apito, 'which is impossible', because the goddess is not dead (B5 ch. 77). Emberus's cleric turns the contradiction into a quest and names two of the party's own items, Katia's crossbow and Donut's oak bracelet, as paths into it (B6 ch. 18); Ysalte's crystal shows what one made the normal way looks like (B6 ch. 69); Apito's lights the sky at Faction Wars and passes to Prepotente (B7 ch. 64, B7 ch. 78). Book 8 answers the riddle without solving it: Osvaldo's god called both his crystals 'wrong' (B8 ch. 41); Apito's woke when Yarilo left the Nothing and 'should not exist' (B8 ch. 70); Scolopendra's attack charges it and it shields a building (B8 ch. 82); and in the arena Eris tells Taranis that 'Four of her five pieces are in here right now' (B8 ch. 97) before he pulls the crystal off Prepotente's neck (B8 ch. 98). Carl's reading is the thread's current state: Krakaren, Samantha and the crystal, which 'contains all her memories and spells', are pieces of a goddess who is not dead but divided (B8 ch. 98); Emberus's own crystal, made the ordinary way, lies in the dirt beside them.
As of book 8. Apito's, on Osvaldo's neck since book 5 and Prepotente's since book 7; in book 8 Osvaldo has handed Apito's to Prepotente and keeps Ysalte's; his god called both 'wrong'. Apito's lit the sky when Yarilo left the Nothing and should not exist; at 11.1% it protects everyone in a building from Scolopendra's attacks and charges on them. Ysalte's protects nothing and passes to Britney; Taranis steals Apito's — 'It was charging up with the Scolopendra attacks' — and Emberus's lies in the dirt.
Open threads
Status is open or resolved; the chapter after it is the last one that moved the thread.
| Thread | Opened | Status |
|---|---|---|
| The Memorial Crystal in Prepotente's hands, and the Epicure | B7 ch. 78 | open · B8 ch. 98 — The crystal charged on Scolopendra's attacks and shielded whoever held it; Taranis pulled it off Prepotente's neck, and Prepotente says he has filed a formal complaint with the Epicure. |
| Ysalte in Britney: a plinth that would bring the goddess back, and two places that might get her out | B8 ch. 79 | open — Britney speaks in Carl's mind, kills Osvaldo at the portal as fast as he moved, takes his Ysalte crystal and a golden skull (B8 ch. 83); Samantha: the gem in a plinth at the Basilica or the Vulgar Temple means 'she’ll be back for good', and Britney must reach the Halls of the Ascendency or Sheol 'to get that crazy Ysalte bitch out of her'. She jumps into the stasis portal after Chris (B8 ch. 85). |
| Scolopendra's nine attacks, two fired and seven waiting | B8 ch. 81 | open — Transformation and Consumption fired; Apito's crystal shielded a building and charged on them until Taranis stole it (B8 ch. 82, B8 ch. 98). Kill her or abandon her and the rest fire at once; she is now a level-1 crawler in Carl's party (B8 ch. 98). Sydnee Iglacia names the old attacks: Control, A Parade of Horribles, This Inevitable Ruin, Bedlam (B8 ch. 99). |
All threads: Open threads.
Through book 5
Through book 6
Through book 8
Osvaldo's two, Apito's and Ysalte's, are both 'wrong' (B8 ch. 41). Apito's, at 0%, lit the sky when Yarilo stepped out of the Nothing and should not exist (B8 ch. 70); at 11.1% after the first attack it protects everyone in a building (B8 ch. 82). Ysalte's protects nothing and passes to Britney (B8 ch. 82, B8 ch. 83). Taranis steals Apito's — 'It was charging up with the Scolopendra attacks' — and Emberus's lies in the dirt (B8 ch. 98).
Trace
The thread line by line, in reading order: its presence before anyone could see it, and the lines that made it legible. Each line is verbatim from the cited book.
| Where | The line | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Book 5, Ch. 8 | The cult has something called a memorial crystal. They’re similar to soul crystals, but what they do has never really been established. | Mordecai on the Night Wyrm's cult: the first mention. |
| Book 5, Ch. 69 | Memorial crystals are similar, but they’re created by fallen gods and demigods. They’re filled with information, usually god-tier-level spells and knowledge. | Mordecai's rule: a crystal means a dead god. |
| Book 5, Ch. 77 | It’s a memorial crystal for the goddess Apito, which is impossible. As far as anyone is aware, the goddess isn’t dead. | Prepotente, on the queen's necklace; Osvaldo carries it off. |
| Book 5, Ch. 77 | » Obtain the item: Memorial Crystal: Apito. See if this has any bearing on Geyrun’s murder. | Emberus's quest gains a step. |
| Book 6, Ch. 18 | Memorial crystals only form when a god has died. Apito lives, yet there is a crystal made by her. How is that possible? You must investigate this. | Pater Coal, Emberus's high cleric. |
| Book 6, Ch. 18 | Katia, and the origins of her crossbow. Princess Donut, and the origins of her oak bracelet. Both are paths to solving this mystery […] neither path can be explored without that memorial crystal. | Two of the party's items are pieces of the same mystery. |
| Book 6, Ch. 69 | » System Message. A Memorial Crystal for the Goddess Ysalte has been generated. It will be available to be looted on a future floor. | A crystal made the normal way, when a god dies. |
| Book 7, Ch. 64 | » You have been tasked with obtaining the item, Memorial Crystal: Apito. The crystal has just shown itself. Abandon your current task and obtain it. | It lights the sky at Faction Wars. |
| Book 7, Ch. 78 | » Memorial Crystal: Apito has fallen from Crawler Osvaldo’s hands and is now in possession of Crawler Prepotente. | The crystal changes hands. |
| Book 8, Ch. 41 | But then after I got it, he said that one was corrupted, wrong. | Osvaldo: his god Tupa rejected both his crystals. |
| Book 8, Ch. 70 | Apito herself is not dead, at least as far as we know, so this crystal should not exist. | Prepotente lets Carl examine it but not keep it: it activated when Yarilo stepped out of the Nothing, and never charges. |
| Book 8, Ch. 82 | Just like the high elves in their castle, my Apito memorial crystal protects me and anyone in the same building or mount as myself. […] now says it’s 11.1% charged. | Charged by Scolopendra's attack, it shields a building. |
| Book 8, Ch. 97 | Four of her five pieces are in here right now watching you try to literally fuck a pig! | Eris to Taranis: their mother is in pieces, not dead. |
| Book 8, Ch. 98 | The deity stole my memorial crystal! The thief pulled it right off my neck! | Taranis takes it. |
| Book 8, Ch. 98 | » Memorial Crystal. Emberus. | A crystal made the normal way, for a god who has just died. |
| Book 8, Ch. 98 | I think Krakaren has something to do with Apito. So does Samantha. And he took the memorial crystal because it contains all her memories and spells. | Carl's reading: the crystal is one of the pieces. |
Where they appear
| Book | Chapters they are in (of the book's) | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 5 — The Butcher's Masquerade | 3/78 | Ch. 8, Ch. 69, Ch. 77 · the book's own page |
| 6 — The Eye of the Bedlam Bride | 5/74 | Ch. 5, Ch. 18, Ch. 27, Ch. 32, Ch. 69 · the book's own page |
| 7 — This Inevitable Ruin | 3/89 | Ch. 64, Ch. 67, Ch. 78 · the book's own page |
| 8 — A Parade of Horribles | 10/99 | 24, 40–41, 69–70, 82–83, 85, 95, 98 · the book's own page |
By book
Memorial crystals in book 5 — The Butcher's Masquerade
Memorial crystals in book 6 — The Eye of the Bedlam Bride
Osvaldo looted Queen Imogen's, and Carl and probably Prepotente have quests for it (ch. 5); Pater Coal: memorial crystals form only when a god has died, yet Apito lives — investigate, and neither Katia's crossbow nor Donut's bracelet can be explored without it (ch. 18); Osvaldo wears it round his neck on the recap (ch. 27); one is generated for Ysalte, for a future floor (ch. 69).
Memorial crystals in book 7 — This Inevitable Ruin
Emberus's quest still wants the 'Soul Crystal—Apito' (ch. 2); it blazes a prismatic beacon from Osvaldo's hands that he cannot stow, and the trees grow taller under it (ch. 64); it shines up out of the pile and strobes like a disco light in the ball (ch. 66, ch. 67); it passes to Prepotente without a fight, and Emberus fears the Epicure (ch. 78). Burcu had a quest for it too (ch. 67).
Memorial crystals in book 8 — A Parade of Horribles
Osvaldo's two, Apito's and Ysalte's, are both 'wrong' (ch. 41). Apito's, at 0%, lit the sky when Yarilo stepped out of the Nothing and should not exist (ch. 70); at 11.1% after the first attack it protects everyone in a building (ch. 82). Ysalte's protects nothing and passes to Britney (ch. 82, ch. 83). Taranis steals Apito's — 'It was charging up with the Scolopendra attacks' — and Emberus's lies in the dirt (ch. 98).