Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

4

Augmented assistant to Professor Dastari

primary

Coldly anticipatory, viewing Arana’s unconscious form as a resource to harvest.

Chessene strides into the hall with purposeful presence, sensing the old mind’s potential before witnessing Shockeye’s brutality. She issues curt orders for Arana’s capture, confirming the exploitation of her mind.

Goals in this moment

• Secure Arana’s mind for temporal experimentation.
• Maintain command by delegating the physical handling of the victim.

Active beliefs

• Intellect drives power; all minds are either tools or threats.
• Mercy is a luxury neither she nor her kind can afford.

Character traits

ruthlessly pragmatic authoritative dispassionate

Follow Chessene's journey

Doña Arana (Local Informant)

primary

Initially serene and reverent, then shocked into terror by the sudden violence.

Arana kneels in reverent prayer before her favorite saint, arranging a rose and crossing herself. She rises and moves across the tiled floor with a white walking stick, unaware until she abruptly collides with Shockeye. A sharp strike to the back of her neck leaves her unconscious.

Goals in this moment

• Maintain her quiet devotion despite the hall’s growing tension.
• Survive the unfolding attack without comprehension.

Active beliefs

• Her ritual brings solace and protection.
• Human dignity still holds value in this place.

Character traits

devout frail unexpecting

Follow Doña Arana …'s journey

Shockeye of the Quauncing Grig

Androgum Culinary Artisan

primary

Sadistically enjoying the moment, masked by cold calculation.

Shockeye lurks in the shadows of the hall, disguised as harmless or unseen. He deliberately bides his time before striking Arana when her back is turned. He assesses her brittle frame with clinical detachment and commentary, marking her as prey.

Goals in this moment

• Assess the physical suitability of Arana as a living vessel for temporal data extraction.
• Ensure Arana is subdued and removed without drawing undue attention.

Active beliefs

• Human life is raw material for art and science.
• Force is the purest form of communication.

Character traits

predatory sadistic calculating

Follow Shockeye of …'s journey

Supporting 1

Varl

Major

secondary

Disgusted by being ordered by a non-Sontaran, masking discomfort with hauteur.

Varl stands rigid in the background, observing Shockeye’s brutality and the unfolding conflict with visible disdain. He outright refuses to follow Shockeye’s order to carry the body, asserting Sontaran disdain for civilian authority and allegiance to Chessene.

Goals in this moment

• Preserve Sontaran chain of command and avoid civilian dominance.
• Obey Chessene, the de facto strategic authority.

Active beliefs

• Sontaran honor and hierarchy supersede all civilian claims.
• Loyalty is transactional, based on utility and order.

Character traits

militaristic contemptuous disciplined

Follow Varl's journey

Objects Involved

Significant items in this scene

3

Arana's White Walking Stick

Arana’s white walking stick serves as both mobility aid and inadvertent trigger for Shockeye’s aggression. Its smooth surface strikes Shockeye’s foot while she moves, drawing his attention and irritating him. After the strike from Shockeye, the cane clatters to the floor, its polished wood abandoned in the chaos.

Before: In Arana’s possession, upright and in use during …

After: Discarded on the tiled floor, fallen from her …

Before: In Arana’s possession, upright and in use during her devotional movement.

After: Discarded on the tiled floor, fallen from her grip during the assault.

Saint Teresa Statue (Doña Arana's Entrance Hall)

The statue of Saint Teresa stands as the focal point of Arana’s devotion, where she kneels to arrange a red rose before its inert stone face. Its solemn serenity is shattered when Shockeye shoves Arana against it during the assault, her unconscious body leaning against its pedestal.

Before: Intact and serene on its pedestal, the recipient …

After: Unmoved in its place of honor, but bearing …

Before: Intact and serene on its pedestal, the recipient of Arana’s quiet reverence.

After: Unmoved in its place of honor, but bearing the impact of human violence as Arana collapses against it.

Altar

The altar, a worn stone slab at the hall’s center, becomes both sacred space and staging ground for coercion. Chessene kneels upon it to claim dominion over Arana’s mind, transforming the place of worship into a platform for grotesque exploitation.

Before: An unassuming stone slab, bearing faint traces of …

After: Stained by the violence of capture and the …

Before: An unassuming stone slab, bearing faint traces of offerings and devotion.

After: Stained by the violence of capture and the pragmatic seizure of a life force.

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

3

Entrance Hall Altarpiece Alcove

The altarpiece area recedes into a hushed alcove within the hall, where a statue of a saint presides over dim, prayerful stillness. Here, Doña Arana kneels with a trembling rose, surrounded by beeswax and old incense, only for Shockeye to step from the shadows, shattering the sanctity with calculated violence.

Atmosphere A hushed, reverent stillness abruptly torn apart by sudden aggression, the scent of beeswax overpowered …

Function Sacred space repurposed as an arena for coercion and the seizure of life force.

Symbolism Symbolizes the corruption of the sacred by temporal predators, where devotion is converted into exploitation.

Access Unaware public access, but breachable by force.

Single statue of a saint, narrow windows filtering golden sunlight, iron candle holders, cracks in the stone pulsing with residual warmth.

Killingworth Public Mining Bathhouse (Grand Entrance)

The entrance hall opens through heavy oak doors into the warm sanctum of the bathhouse, where geothermal heat rises from below and the air holds the scent of cedar and brass. This quiet refuge of terracotta and warmth becomes the stage for sudden terror as Shockeye’s shadow falls across the tiles, his violence shattering the hall’s fragile peace.

Atmosphere A tense, oppressive calm giving way to sudden brutality, the warmth of the room contrasting …

Function Sanctuary turned battleground and capture site, a place of transition from private devotion to violent …

Symbolism Represents the vulnerability of ordinary spaces when invaded by predatory forces, where warmth and quiet …

Access Technically open to the public but de facto controlled by the intruders’ power.

Geothermal warmth rising from subterranean pipes, terracotta tiles underfoot, gas lamps in brass sconces casting long shadows, and the distant echo of town bells outside.

Centre of Leisure

The broad stone staircase rises steeply amid shadows cast by flickering candlelight, its worn steps arching upward toward refuge. Chessene and Varl ascend it after Chessene denies Shockeye’s delegation, their boots echoing the displacement of moral weight—power shifting upward, the victim left behind.

Atmosphere Oppressive silence broken only by the rhythmic protest of aged timber, the path out of …

Function Route of escape and symbolic ascent of power, contrasted with the descent into victimhood.

Symbolism Signifies the elevation of the ruthless over the vulnerable, the movement from coercion to command.

Access Free movement upward for the powerful; no return for the captured.

Fading heraldic sigils on pediments, threadbare carpet runners clinging to risers, natural light spilling onto the top landing promising false refuge.

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

What led here 4

Causal

"Doña Arana's devout and peaceful nature as she prays (beat_9699be77c29adebd) makes her exploitation by Shockeye and Chessene's plan to use her mind all the more tragic and horrifying (beat_c53d4cfefa05d30b), emphasizing the theme of exploitation."

Shockeye assaults Arana and claims her mind