The Winter Quests (novel): Difference between revisions

| hero(es)= [[CS-NA]]<br>[[Pythagoras-858]]<br>[[Juliet-178]]<br>[[Tero Trollgarsson|The Troll]]

| villain(s)= [[Sigyn#In the Prime Universe|Sigyn]]<br>[[Loki#In the Prime Universe|Loki]]

| setting= [[C.I.I. Headquarters]], [[Cupid Homeworld|The Cupid Homeworld]]<br>[[Finland|Finnish]] forest, [[Prime Universe]]<br>[[The Forest]], [[Prime Universe]]

| length= 19 chapters

====Chapter 1====

Although it's late December, [[Juliet-178]] and [[Pythagoras-858]] are called by the [[Supreme Quaestor]] to his office on the top floor of the [[C.I.I. Headquarters]], where the Quaestor wordlessly hands Pythagoras a piece of paper describing an assigment, prompting him to whisk Juliet off to his [[Fog Ship]] and from there to a snowy forest in [[Finland]]. As they traipse through the snow, eventually making their way to a clearing with a stone in the centre, Pythe explains to Juliet that they are set to meet [[Sigyn#In the Prime Universe|a goddess of the Norse pantheon]] to discuss a bargain between her and the Crew, to acquire an item which she is auctioning off and which the Crew are quite anxious that some of its enemies (like the [[Collective of the Retconning Crocodiles]]) ''not'' get their hands on. Juliet is needed because it is likely the goddess will send the Cupids on a mythical quest to prove their worth. Pythe eventually realises that the stone he's been sitting on is in fact a [[Rune]] [[Rune Stone|Stone]].

====Chapter 2====

[[CS-NA]], or “Cesse”, a ship-building robot whom the [[Crew of the Copper-Colored Cupids]] took in a long time ago, reflects on the patterns of the lives of the [[Clockwork Cherub]]s and events in the [[Cupid Homeworld]]. He notes a trend of the Cupids' adventures having gotten higher-scale and more dangerous over the last few years. Fearing that this will impact their holidays despite [[Celebration-665]]'s best efforts, he resolves to “Save [[Christmas]]” as thanks for how kind the Cupids have always been to him.

====Chapter 3====

After examining the [[Rune Stone]], [[Pythagoras-858|Pythe]] presses a hand onto the stone in an area that seems to be meant for the purpose. This activates the stone's magic, and it quickly explodes into a bank of magical fog with [[Sigyn#In the Prime Universe|the goddess]] at the centre of it. Pythe begins talking to her deferentially, but soon [[Juliet-178]] cannot stop herself from involving herself in the conversation, which takes a livelier turn. The goddess, at any rate, explains that she is considering the Crew's proposition, but does indeed want Pythe and Juliet to prove themselves by going on a quest to “slay a [[Wyrm of Loki|certain wyrm]] and recover [[Loki#In the Prime Universe|a certain 'serpent']]”. Juliet is overjoyed.

====Chapter 4====

[[CS-NA]], having determined that he needs to go out into the [[Multiverse]] to get a real sense of what [[Christmas]] is all about so as to be in a position to set up the best Christmas ever for the Cupids, visits the [[Celestial Foam Network]] to ask [[Doctor Sigma]] for the use of a [[Fog Ship]]. Sigma, whom Cesse finds in the process of repairing [[Rosen-035]]'s [[Dimensional Monocle]], gives him a personal [[dematerialisation circuit]] that can be plugged directly into his own systems, with no need of a ship. Setting random coordinates, CS-NA leaves on his adventure.

====Chapter 5====

After [[Sigyn|the goddess]] leaves them in a flash of light, [[Pythagoras-858]] and [[Juliet-178]] decide to get themselves lost further into the woods, until the magic of the old trees leads them out of the mundane Finnish woods and into “[[the Forest]]”. Once there, they find their way to a clearing with a small waterfall tumbling off a large stone. Guessing that there must be a secret cavern behind the waterfall, Juliet hops in, only to find that while she was right, the cavern in question is not the “secret gateway into the [[World Below]]” that they're looking for, but rather the burrow of a [[Troll|Scandinavian Troll]].

=== Worldbuilding ===

====Jenny====

''to be written''

====Universes====

* The story begins in the [[Cupid Homeworld]].

* [[Pythagoras-858]] and [[Juliet-178]] travel to [[Finland]] in the [[Prime Universe]]. Lore about [[the Forest]] is revealed.

====Other====

* [[Helsinki]] is a city in [[Finland]].

* [[Clockwork Cherub]]s were constructed to be incapable of romantic love.

* [[Rosen-035]]'s [[Rift]]-detecting [[Dimensional Monocle]] has a [[thingumawhizzleometer]] set in its square frame. It also contains a [[rift-wave adder-upper]], which is in need of repairs, making the whole device non-functional in the meantime.

===Continuity===

* [[Juliet-178]] has noticed that “supernatural happenstances seem to have a way of occurring around the New Year”, a reference to the series' yearly winter multi-part serials, including the previous year's [[PROSE]]: ''[[The Time of the Toymaker (novel)|The Time of the Toymaker]]''. The [[Decade Stone]], also referenced in [[PROSE]]: ''[[The Case Against Conspiracy (short story)|The Case Against Conspiracy]]'', is additionally mentioned as an example of this.

* [[CS-NA]] recollects how the previous year's Christmas adventure for the Cupids involved “a Christmastime jaunt to save [[Madame Tarsa|a god-like being]]”, alluding to the main plot of [[PROSE]]: ''[[The Time of the Toymaker (novel)|The Time of the Toymaker]]''.

==Behind the scenes==

===Read online===