Unnamed visual novel sample

label IntroductionStart:
    scene cg pocketwatch

    "I move the cantilever back with a pair of tweezers, taking care to test the actuation force. The force required to pull the cantilever back is so light, my first attempt led to plastic deformation."

    "It has become easy to gauge infinitesimal increments of my strength now. I have grown accustomed to this delicate work quickly."

    "The thin tiny metal springs sing to me in my dreams, the smell of the clear, viscous oil clings to my finger tips."

    "For two weeks now, I have been studying clock-making under my father’s tutelage."

    "I am assaulted at all sides by distractions. The steady, reassuring thumping of my heart, the slow, measured breathing of my father, the scratching of insects outside in the summer heat—but none of that matters."

    "I let the sounds run over me and wash off of me. Nothing can touch my concentration."

    "I have trained my concentration all of my life and it has become neigh unbreakable."

    play sound click

    "With great care, I lower the tiny metal cog in place; the final piece to the puzzle."

    "I have always thought myself to have steady hands, until I began building clocks."

    "It was another of my father’s lessons. Any time he felt I grew too confident in any one thing, he would present me a new task that would challenge my abilities."

    "I noticed my heartbeat was increasing and my breathing becoming irregular. Symptoms of increased anxiety? Or, was it anticipation."

    "Whichever it was, the symptoms would unsteady my hands. I paused and counted quietly until they passed."

    "It would not do to let carelessness in now—not when I am so close."

    "I had been thoroughly chastised for damaging the first components I worked with. I had been foolhardy, overconfident, and had moved too brusquely."

    "Stupid mistake."

    "Each piece had been imported from the capital of Brehaudl, Nydrae. They had been extremely costly to be wasted on a novice like myself. My father claimed that made the lesson all the more meaningful."

    "Certain the symptoms had passed, I aligned the cantilever and set it in place."

    "I withdrew my tools from the pocket watch and swiftly reassembled the outer chassis."

    scene bg fathershouse

    "I stopped periodically to polish the metallic surface to a fine golden sheen, careful not to disrupt any of the inner mechanisms."

    "My father had explained that great value was placed on perfection of beauty by patrons—that the most minor attention to detail should be appreciated."

    "His stories suggested that often beauty, through attention to detail, was appreciated to a larger degree than quality of craftsmanship."

    "I was determined to follow his guidance without ever sacrificing quality."

    "I lifted the pocket watch and inspected it in the afternoon light."

    "It was so light for something so complex. I had spent every waking hour engrossed in the work—and it was finished."

    "The intricately carved metal frame caught a gleam of sunlight as I rotated it in my hand. My father had instructed me to carve this piece of metal prior to working on the pocket watch itself. He had wanted me to choose what to depict."

    "It was another one of his lessons. He had said that I lacked creativity and had begun to push me to, as he put it, \"Think for myself\"."

    "I had chosen a geometrical pattern that resembled large, blockish diamonds at a distance, but up close collapsed into a chaotic swirl. It had been from one of my favorite mathematical problems he taught me seven and a half years ago."

    "Color returned to my world as my hyper-focus waned. The corners of my eyes began to itch, but I suppressed it."

    "The smells of the workshop returned to my awareness in a rush. Pungent hardwood and leather, the crisp smell of a great green apple in my father’s palm."

    "The breeze carried the pervasive, pleasant smells of the mountains mixed with the acrid smell of farm-animal refuse."

    "I drew a deep breath in through my nostrils, eyes closed and savoring each distinct scent."

    "The chair creaked softly as my father rose. Eight solid thumps on the hardwood floor and he was just behind me."

    "I handed the pocket watch to him, letting the cool, glimmering metal dance between my fingers as it slipped from my hand to his open palm."

    show father frown at right

    "He inspected the body of the pocket watch with sturdy, calloused fingers. His deft touch never smudged the polished surface."

    "After slowly rotating it twice, he opened the casing to reveal the crystal covering the delicate gears."

    "His bristly white mustache twitched, a vein in his forehead trembled. His lips drew inward as he inspected the pocket watch. He was hesitating, he certainly was disappointed in the quality."

    "I felt an unfamiliar swelling pressure behind my eyes, but remained still."

    "He seemed to breathe again and shake his head slightly before placing the pocket watch on the table. Using his loupe, he inspected the gears more closely. I watched passively as his white whiskers scrubbed over the crystalline surface of the watch face."

    fa "It is, of course, almost perfect."

    "When he finally spoke, it surprised me. His earlier hesitation belied his disappointment with me—why wasn’t he voicing it? Or were the imperfections to be expected and forgiven of an amateur?"

    fa forced "You are far too clever."

    "His gravelly voice washed away my fears. I no longer expected disappointment, he seemed to think I had done well, even with any unvoiced amateurish mistakes I had made."

    mc "Thank-you, father."

    "I said it flatly, hesitantly. He was behaving queerly. He never hesitated this way before, I find that I do not know how to respond."

    fa "You’ve reached first-mastery in the art of clock making already. You are truly unnaturally gifted."

    "Was that a compliment? I couldn’t tell, but he said it while smiling so I decided to take that it was."

    "He continued to look over the watch, but it seemed he was using it more of a distraction than continuing his inspection."

    "His grey eyes listlessly bored holes in the table, his thin jowls working as he worked his jaw, grinding his teeth."

    "None of this was right; he hadn’t displayed any of these traits before. I found myself lost without a solid foothold. I could not tell what my father was thinking. I felt an urgency creeping in to my heart’s rhythm, but pushed it aside."

    mc "Father?"

    "He smiled, but the worn crow’s feet around his eyes did not crinkle the right way. I felt my heart’s rhythm disrupt further. Something was wrong, but I could not place what it was. My jaw clenched involuntarily mimicking his tic."

    fa "I believe that I have officially taught you everything I know."

    "I gave no response. My father was an endless wealth of knowledge, he—"

    fa "You’ve probably realized it already, but for the last year I’ve been studying day and night to keep you learning."

    "I remained silent, the earlier sensation in my chest gone and replaced with nothingness, crisp and stark as a winter snow."

    fa "You’re far sharper than I could have hoped and your thirst for knowledge is nothing short of incredible. You remember everything you have ever read, everything ever said to you. You need only fail once to redefine your limitations."

    fa "It’s breathtaking to witness."

	FA “To achieve first mastery of such a complex and nuanced skill in just two weeks… it’s unfathomable.”

	“First mastery is the point of knowledge my father describes just at pre-specialization.”

	“To achieve first mastery is to have the knowledge and skill required to complete it at an above-average level without assistance, but more importantly, the knowledge required to properly direct a specialist without being mislead or focusing too much on details to see the bigger picture.”

	“This was why my father changed my specialization so frequently. He had taught me to reach first mastery in any skill I came across, but warned me to never go further.”

	“He feared that progressing past this point would skew my perspective and, thus, my ability to effectively plan complex large-scale operations.”

	FA “To think, your first skill took almost a year to reach this level. You really definitely are a culmination of your experiences in a unique and powerful way.”

	FA smile “You will make a fantastic adviser to one of the great houses.”

	“He had always intended for me to claim the supposedly coveted title of chief Adviser for one of the great houses of Brehaudl.”

	FA “At this rate, you will be working as King Brehntan’s primary adviser in no time!”

	“Unbidden, an image of the Brehntan’s insignia came to my mind. Leaves of gold on a Hyperion tree, stretching across mount Vertra and the Eityn sea.”

	FA “Well, on the topic of Nydrae…”

	“He trailed off. I glanced over to him and noticed the earlier symptoms returning. He stared off into a space somewhere on the floor beside him.”

	“I followed his gaze and studied the scratched surface of the dark hardwood floors. I could hear his breathing shift and saw in my peripherals his hands wringing together.”

	“He was thinking of the best way to approach the topic without saying it outright. He had never hesitated to tell me when I had mad errors before in the past, why was he hesitating now?”

	“I looked up at him and studied his face.”

	“His white bristles tremored slightly with his breathing. I noticed his jaw working again. Was he finally going to bring my deficiency to light? I was almost eager to hear it beside this feeling in my chest.”

	FA Sad “I’m afraid I am no longer of any value you to, [mc].”

	“I had planned out my response the moment I observed his hesitations and deduced their meaning. Reading emotion was always my weakest point, but I had never been so far off before.”

	“It were as if I were running frantically and tripped over a sprouting root. I found myself fumbling and grasping for words as my mind worked at an alarming rate to shift my analysis to include this new datum.”

	FA forced “Sorry, I didn’t mean to alarm you.”

	“He said it with a proper smile, this time. I felt tension bleed from my body at the sight.”

	“I still could not deduce what he was thinking, but somehow my thought processes took far less unpleasant turns in their projections.”

	MC “Why would you consider yourself anything but invaluable to me?”

	“I said it slowly, carefully letting the words roll off my tongue. Something was still wrong, but what he said was thoroughly and categorically a fallacy.”

	FA “I have taught you all I can. I have known this day was coming for years, there’s no way I could ever keep up with you.”

	“I thought on what he had said earlier, that he had been struggling for the last year to instruct me.”

	“I realized that fourteen months back had marked a slowing in my growth, his instructions had become less clear, he had deferred me to outside sources more often.”

	“I had spent nearly half of the last year learning specialties from those among the villagers and reached first mastery in all of them. Since that time my father had always had his nose buried in a book.”

	FA “You’re easier to read than you believe.” #Refer to this as a variable, perhaps so it can be called in Act I - Scene 3 without worrying about the phrasing changing with subsequent editing.

	“I looked up at him. He cut off my train of thought again. Never had I been so thoroughly kept off balance in a conversation before.”

	“My father smiled and strode across the dark hardwood floor to the counter and poured himself a glass of wine.”

	FA “I don’t mean to keep you off balance like this. I suppose for you it would be easier if I just said it outright, correct?”

	“I slowly nodded, feeling a tightness in my chest.”

	FA “Have I ever told you anything about my life before you became my son?”

	“I sifted through my memories, sand through a sieve, until the right ones remained.”

	MC “You have, yes. You were a chemist and a bit of an archaeologist until you met my mother.”

	“A chemist—one of the noble sciences my father had called them.”

	“A study truly dedicated to the broad diversity of the world.”

	“The study of chemistry was fundamentally the study of all matter that made up the world—the entire universe—and my father was a master of it.”

	MC “You traveled a lot and explored many old ruins in Teagnei to find new synthesis ingredients.”

	“My father smiled again, slowly lowering his body into a chair by the counter. I heard his right knee pop and the wooden chair creek against his slight frame.”

	FA “Of course. Did I ever mention where I worked?”

	“I hesitated, he may have, but not often enough to link many memories together. I began a more rigorous search of my memories, but a wave of his gnarled hand paused the effort.”

	FA “No, no—don’t bother; this isn’t a test. I guess I didn’t speak of it much, then.”

	FA “I was trained in the world’s greatest school, Sehndra Academy.”

	“The word caused the memories to churn up unbidden, few as they were. He had said precious little about it, but had always smiled when he mentioned it.”

	FA “If you truly wish to continue your learning, perhaps you would consider enrolling?”

	“I looked into his grey eyes and watched his gnarled face as he took a slow sip of his wine.”

	“Had this been what he was trying to approach? Was this subject difficult for him to approach for some reason?”

	FA “They have the world’s finest library there—it’s almost the size of the town.”

	“He said it with a twinkle in his eyes and a slight upturning of the right corner of his lip.”

	MC “The entire town?”

	“I found myself responding at a mere whisper and cleared my throat.”

	“The spark in his eye grew brighter and he let out a loud, but short laugh.”

	FA “Yes, indeed. The entire town. And what’s more, it is several stories tall.”

	“I found myself failing to imagine the scale appropriately, but there could easily be tens of thousands of books if what he said were correct.”

	FA “Whatever number you’re calculating right now, increase it by a factor of ten, the isles are so close together you can barely walk two abreast throughout the entirety of the library.”

	“I found the scale of my imagination struggling to cope. It was too grand by far to construct in my usual method.”

	“I imagined large bookshelves stacked as far as the eye could see in every direction laid out haphazardly over twenty meters high. It didn’t live up to the wonder I heard in my father’s voice.”

	“I could feel a quickening in my pulse and a flood of endorphins at the mere thought of so much knowledge contained in one place. It must be wonderful to cause such symptoms in me so strongly.”

	“I had always insisted I would memorize every book I came across, but the supposed scale of this made me rethink my claim. Could even I remember so much information? Would there be enough time to even memorize that many books in my time there?”

	“Yet at the same time, mixed in with these thoughts and feelings I found myself looking around the room carefully, as if to solidify it in my mind.”

	“What would become of my home? Of my father?”

	FA “No matter how much you learn, I will always have the upper-hand in chemistry! Even if you do decide to specialize in it.”

	“He said it with another laugh, but this time his smile did not reach his eyes. He drank of his wine too deeply and let out an ever so slightly elongated breath after finishing.”

	“The first assumption I made, immediately discarded, was that he feared I would surpass him.”

	“No, my father was not that kind of man, he would be proud to if I were able to manage that.”

	“I looked around the room once again, briefly. That was when I understood.”

	“It was rare for me to understand feelings, but I had seen this one often enough that I could recognize it finally.”

	“Pieces that had not made sense until now began to rapidly snap into place.”

	“Disappointment? I couldn’t have been more wrong.”

	MC “What will you… do while I am gone?”

	“I ask it hesitantly, uncertain how best to approach the topic of his discomfort.”

	“It had always looked so easy when I saw others do this, they somehow seemed to naturally know how to respond. I was never so elegant.”

	FA “Don’t worry about me, I still have my work. There are always things about town that need my special care.”

	“He said it with a twinkle in his eye that I struggled with. He was obviously happy, he met all the conditions—however, he was just as obviously not happy.”

	“That juxtaposition had muddled my analysis, but in the end I realized he was worrying over sending me away to study.”

	MC “I will continue to learn from you, father. You still have more to teach me, I—”

	FA “No. You will not pass up an opportunity like this just to keep your old man company.”

	“I had trouble sifting through the conflicting information.”

	“He wanted me to go because he thought it was best for me. At the same time, he so obviously did not want me to go.”

	FA “A father can miss his child without holding him back.”

	“He spoke it flatly and emphasized it by draining his cup.”

	FA “I want you to think about what you want, for once. This is a decision you should make by yourself.”

	“He says that, but makes his opinion obvious—he believe I will accept and believes it to be the correct course of action.”

	FA “You have a gift not to be wasted on sheep and wine. You have the ability to be a true observer, a true tactician to lead a house.”

	“He set his glass down, staring over his bulbous nose at the empty glass before continuing.”

	FA “Your gift of observation is astounding.”

	FA “I have said this to you before, but sometimes it is not always what one says that tells you the most about them, but what they don’t say. Silence can speak more than words.”

	FA “Your gift allows you to see that silence, to work with it and expound upon it. All you need is to learn the one thing I’ve never been able to teach you.”

	FA “Was I a terrible father?”

	“Again I find myself taken off-guard.”

	“Was there an appropriate response to that question? I had never observed anyone ask it so bluntly before.”

	MC “No, I—”

	“My father held up his hand.”

	FA “I know the lessons were grueling. Though, I suppose you’ve grown used to them over the years.”

	MC “My greatest joy is learning”

Fuck it go to sleep I’ll write more later.



    "This is the end, stop reading."

	“Stop reading or the game will close or some shit, IDK even I haven’t read this far.”

	“Fine, have it your way dude.”
return