Establishment

[Anastasia]

"Dana," Miranda says a single word, a warning heard by all.

"Aaanyfuckingway, how about we focus on breaking this shit?" Dana counters right back.

[Yuthirin]

"Well...how should we break it?" Calleigh asks, "I mean, there's lots of ways to break a thing. Burn it, smash it, bash it, melt it, shatter it, disintegrate it, freeze it, paint it, you know."

[Anastasia]

"Some way that's artistic?" Benyen reckons, rubbing his chin. "Like I dunno, what's artistic."

Eyes naturally turn to Calleigh and Tryll here.

[Yuthirin]

"I dunno! We've never broken anything artistically before! Just broke stuff! Lemme think!" Calleigh complains.

[Anastasia]

Miranda considers, "What is art, really? What makes something artistic?"

"Um, a lot of colors?" Benyen offers, as you notice the gray slaad hmph.

"Not a bad attempt for an uncultured boor," he says, "Color is always important."

[Yuthirin]

"Well yeah, color is super important, but we're going beyond just color here. Color doesn't automatically equate to art. Any moron can dump a bucket of paint on a canvas and give it a name and call it art. It might even be art to them, but most people will consider it garbage. We're looking at a tough method, here. Creative destruction is really avant garde right now, especially in the more chaotic parts of Brightwater. At the same time, it's really difficult to pull off because if you don't get it juuuuuuuuuuust right it looks like a boring and sad pile of scrap. Nobody wants that in their parlor, and getting a gallery to host a small heap of rubble is super tricky lemme tell ya. It needs to be evocative and meaningful. That's what makes the difference between art and just stuff. Art for art's sake is meaningless. It's got no value, no soul. Art for the sake of truth, art for the sake of beauty, that's what people look for. Real art is something that you can look at and it reaches out and connects with your soul. It's the kind of thing that brings you joy, or gives you chills, or inspires or terrifies or whatever you want. Real art, people fall in love with. They look and see it and they have to have it. They have to own it, to share it, and to see it every day. Real art connects on a deeply emotional level with someone. At least one person. Real art has a tiny bit of the artist's soul in it, and it's special because of it. Or at least I think so. I dunno." Calleigh says. "We've made enough bad art to know the difference."

'Hey! It wasn't that bad!' Tryll protests.

"It was pretty bad." Calleigh returns.

'Ah, but we made it together, and that's what counts. We had fun!'

"Yep!"

'So, let's take a look at this thing and see what we can do.' Tryll says, examining the sword with Detect Psionics.

[Anastasia]

Dana listens to all of that, scoffs and says, "Bullshiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit. Art for art's sake is the entire fucking point, since otherwise it's all whatever someone thinks is important, whatever bullshit they're peddling at the right fucking moment."

Miranda pauses at that, "I thought you didn't know anything about art," she says, dubiously.

Meanwhile you see the sword isn't magical or psionic.

[Yuthirin]

"Nuh uh! That's just some guy making a thing and going, 'man I wonder how much this will sell for!'" Calleigh retorts, "That's not art! That's just profiteering!"

[Anastasia]

"Isn't the question if art has objective value or if it's only subjective and based in the eye of the viewer?" Miranda pipes up. "That's what this sounds like."

Benyen shrugs, "It's just a pretty painting or sword?"

[Yuthirin]

"It's...that's...okay fine I argued myself into a corner. So what! I'm not wrong!"

[Anastasia]

"Right, so anyfuckingway," Dana points to the sword, "How the fuck do we break this artistically?"

[Yuthirin]

'Well, I'm not sure, to be honest. It's not, hmm.' Tryll ponders.

A bit stumped here. Let me think on it a bit.

[Anastasia]

Sure. Lemme know if you want them babbling at you to try and give you ideas.

[Yuthirin]

please!

[Anastasia]

"A glass sword," Miranda speaks aloud, thinking as everyone does, "What would be ironic to break a sword on? Artistic, even?"

A soft hum from Benyen, "How about a glass shield? Or maybe a normal person?"