iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

"Some of it, but wouldn't you know, half of it keeps blowing away? I hope this is the bit you were looking for. If not... well, wait ten minutes." From down here, she peers up curiously, studied gaze wondering at the effect lighting his eyes, seeing what more she can find.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Even her features lack the sharp angles of one native to the Underdark. The others here, by and large, were dour, sometimes suspicious creatures, tired and worn by sun and sand. Despite the shadowed lines under her dark yellow eyes, though, she's in good spirits and meets him with a bright smile.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

"Well, hopefully I haven't lost [too] much esteem in the descent." From the bottom of the chin to the top of her head, really. Even the fluff of her hair beneath her goggles leaves quite a drop from the height of a typical Drow, shortened still by a slight lean upon her cane.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

but the elders appear satisfied and dismiss her. She descends by way of a short set of stairs and winds her way toward the gates. Someone should greet their visitor properly, after all, and she could use the distraction right now.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

and after a few shouts from the other side of the wall, the simple wooden gate before him swings open. "Why don't we take this as a sign to break for a while?" she asks the others. "You've given me plenty to consider. With time I might find an answer." Might - a disheartening word,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

but she can't help but meet his playful manner with an amused chuckle. "Just a lot more sand, friend, but I don't think we'll begrudge you a look today." She leans back from the edge and out of his sight for a few moments. She's asking for approval of this decision from the elders,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

He's a man alone on the barren trail through a desert shaped by destruction and the Weave itself, holding his hands up as if that proves him no threat and wondering if it's him she's addressing. It may be that the long meetings in this dreadful heat have finally gotten to her,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

If you use a root digger plow, I could create a simple gearbox, and enchant it to... Ah, sorry. You're probably not interested in all the minutiae of the plans. Do you currently use horses, motors, or operate the plows or diggers by your own power?"

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

and setting aside anything that won't fit the form she needs. "Then we should start with something simple, I think. Perhaps a tool they already use can be made easier to maneuver, or do more of the heavy lifting. Creating something new they [won't] use is worse than doing nothing at all.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

Plans begin forming from the first moment of his acceptance - plans that screech to a halt when he presents this additional information. She takes a deep breath, but not one of irritation. She's centering her thoughts, sorting through what she had in mind, holding it up to this new information,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

And secondly, a stranger approaching from the dull scrub surrounding the only thing that passed for a road in this savage frontier. "Hail, stranger," she calls out in a clear, youthful voice, and finds that the others gathered had not yet noticed the figure. "Friend or foe?"

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

She leans heavily upon the handrail as she listens, one hand gloved and the other carefully crafted of delicately worked metal. Her cane rests beside her. And she has encountered two things in quick succession: Firstly, a problem that even the mind of a brilliant inventor cannot yet solve...

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Instead, she now found herself in a watchtower, watching the horizon as the village elder explained a different matter entirely to her. This, she soon learned, was far more concerning than this small first step towards the re-invigoration of this vast wasteland.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

This is the... seventh? no, ninth town this month, and only two months after it was built in the first place. She's been busy. But of course, she's uniquely qualified for this sort of work; she invented the machine she's been sent to inspect, and those in each town before.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

[Starter for @cantripthesehands.bsky.social] It was supposed to be a simple job: return to a stumbling town on the outskirts of the hostile Anauroch Desert, and to the magical engine she'd built there for the express purpose of collecting the scant water in the immediate environment.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 15/02/2026

and if you might consider automated tools that could increase your yield here." There's an interest in her, too, an admiration that has little to do with the project they discuss; she took joy in seeing someone who had such a sense of pride in their work.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 15/02/2026

She could just about burst with delight when she hears that - but she holds back the tidal wave of questions she's dying to ask. Best not get ahead of herself now. "That's a rather large undertaking, but an admirable one. I have to wonder how traditional your family is,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 11/10/2025

deliberately ties to her belt before swiftly walking back to join him.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 11/10/2025

"Let me get my things! I'll need to know what sort of tools you use. What's your primary crop here?" As she rattles off her questions, she jogs back the short distance to where she'd tied her pony. From it's saddlebags, she takes a moderate backpack and a small pouch she carefully,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 10/10/2025

until they reach a hallway branching off the main hall.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 10/10/2025

of the Elven people native to the Underdark. The Underdark," she continues, mindful that he's not of this world, "is a dangerous subterranean realm with its own unique ecosystem. There are some handful of humanoid races among those that call it home." They enter as she answers, and she leads on

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 10/10/2025

no matter her complicated feelings towards the Gondians themselves. The farm girl never quite grew familiar with the pace of industry. "He should be j– Oh," she emerges from her thoughts to begin speaking just as he does, but quickly changes gears when prompted with a question. "Drow are a subrace

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 10/10/2025

The tap of her cane against cobblestone turns to the twang of metal against metal. It fades, then, beneath the beating drum of hammers and pistons, finding strange unity in a discordant hymn. Each tradesman-priest they pass seems to know it by heart. Always a little distracting,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 05/10/2025

"I thought harvest season might be the best opportunity to start offering. I know it's busy season, so I [promise] I'll keep any downtime to a minimum. Well! Would you like to start now or should I come back another day?"

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 05/10/2025

"Exactly!" When her smile lights up her face, he could just about watch it turn to pure solar energy powering the machines of potential & possibility that fired in her mind. The last neighbor she'd visited had warned her off Kent Farm. Good thing she rarely took second-hand reports at face value.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

"is to ask if I can offer some assistance with your upkeep. I'm quite skilled with machines, pardon the bragging, and I'm looking for more practice. I would [not] charge for labor, only the more costly parts."

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

She continues with a little more ease. "Oh, who could blame him?" She quips back. "Some mornings, we're out in the field so long I think my mittens will freeze onto me. No more tinkering if they did, y'know? The reason I'm here," she becomes a little more direct again,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

She just about beams. Introductions were always the hard part. She never knew quite how long she should talk, when she crossed over into rambling... but! He seems interested, and a [lot] more friendly than some. Not bad on the eyes eith.... ahem.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

My name is Tes'serana, and I live on a farm about three miles northwest." Precisely so, if her math's right. She kept track of her radius so she knew how far to travel on her next loop. "I was wondering if you make much use of mechanical equipment here on your farm."

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

"Hello!" She smiled up at him. Most humans were a fair bit taller than her, though she wasn't so short as the smaller races; she thanked her father for that, as well. Familiarity and his warm welcome put her at ease, and she moved right into her query. "Lovely day, isn't it? I'm not sure we've met.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 21/09/2025

always passing through, visiting the farmers to offer a mutually beneficial proposal. Today, the reins turned her humble steed down the lane to @heirofel.bsky.social's farm. She dismounted after a steady pace to the farmhouse, climbed its steps, and knocked politely at its front door.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 21/09/2025

for the night, and if not, she never minded a blanket of stars. It's some years before she'll lose two limbs to her work, and more before illness would take her; she already knows to anticipate the former, thanks to eyes so much like her father's. She was known in the area by now,

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 21/09/2025

Years ago... A young woman in simple clothes sat upon a weary pony as it trod down a worn dirt rode. In its packs, it carried tools, spare parts, and hearty, home-cooked food. She isn't far from home, and she'll likely return before sunset. If not - hospitality usually offered her a bed

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 13/09/2025

Ah! Thank you, I'm almost out. Must remember to go to the market...

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 13/09/2025

Where were they... ah! Gond! Right. She squeezes through the crowd, wincing when she's jostled but pressing forward. Not far from the temple now, and soon enough they're approaching its steps.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 13/09/2025

"I try not to bear the weight of others' choices, lest I lock myself into complete inaction. Though, neither am I the true believer of Gond, believing in creation without limitation. Fortunately, Master Wands keeps a close eye on anything patented within his employ. I sleep a little easier."

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 13/09/2025

Reminder to self: follow up with Guard Howe regarding vault access door's lock failure. Replacements up to Master Wands' specifications are difficult to come by and require a great deal of resources to Fabricate. Awaiting approval of the latter, expected later today.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 13/09/2025

Observed washbasin faucet running without obvious input. Suspect valve may be loose, given intermittent nature, but running tests for possible entities interacting with the mechanisms.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 31/08/2025

"Good day!" She's already greeted her once. Bother. "Um, a pleasure. Tes'serana Whitgear, at your service." Her name is known among inventors, but... she doesn't expect much recognition of it from the warrior.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 29/08/2025

we bring to the world. Even simple, helpful creations can avalanche to something disastrous."

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 29/08/2025

The silence that follows his story of his father's fate is swallowed by the crowd. Her pitch is a little higher, tone a little strained when she answers; she's trying not to think to deeply on that matter, and forcing a cheery reply. "It's the thing, isn't it? We have to be so careful with what

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 01/04/2025

"Er. Never mind. Tried for a joke, didn't get there. ...I don't people very often."

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

the district, it becomes tougher to make progress forward with her cane in tow. "Um. Right, you were saying you were meant to be a banker? That's awfully specific. Did he ever come around?"

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

But it [is] where we're headed. This supplier, Drellen, spends most of his time in the workshops there. It makes it easier for the other crafters to find him and put in their orders. We might have a bit of a wait." She's not the fastest mover, and as the streets grow more crowded deeper into

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

"What? No, of course not! Not unless you... I don't know, worship Talos or something - a god of destruction. He's not really the smiting sort. In the greater scheme of things, he's not really on the side of good or evil, he just... builds. Can't imagine you're much of a follower of anyone, though.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 30/03/2025

given sufficient skill and materials." As they journey on, the roads become smoother, the homes larger and more ornate. This is the wealthiest ward of the city, where many of the nobles made their homes or passed time together.

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Tes'serana Whitgear @whitgear.bsky.social · 30/03/2025

For the task before you, the blessing of the Wonderbringer will serve well. And it's been a while since I offered a tithe, myself." Realizing the confusion this will cause, she clarifies, "Gond is our god of artifice and craft. His followers teach that artifice can match or outdo magic,

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