Work Text:
Something unexpected has happened. The Spectator focuses their camera in on the action to watch the scene unfold. The little spider had expertly outmaneuvered the enemies in the desert temple they were trying to loot, but on their way down they must have overlooked one of the traps. They quickly tried to retreated up their cobweb but it was too late, the trap exploded and their entire inventory got scattered across the desert temple floor.
The Doctor and Verity run into the temple inspecting the sight from the edge of the giant crater.
“Doctor! What just happened!”, Verity, the one more inexperienced with the game, asks. The Doctor makes panicked noises in reponse which seem to communicate the situation well enough. “Is Caryo-“
“Caryo’s dead. But that - that might not be dead-dead, because in this game, when you die, it’s generally not permanent? I’m hoping it’s not permanent. I - I just had - a thought - okay.” The Doctor seems tob e at the verge of a panick attack, which is an interesting point for the Spectator to keep in mind.
“Dead.”, Verity’s tone is flat and despondent.
“No. No, no. They’re not dead! Well, they are dead, but they’re not dead-dead, it’s - ohhhh, okay.”, the Doctor’s frantic ramblings fade away as the Spectator moves their camera to the bottom of the pit left behind by the bomb.
Various items from Caryo’s inventory are scattered on the temple floor: an axe, a sword and a pickaxe, as well as some redstone and obsidian. There are also to bits of cobweb among. No, not cobweb. It just had the texture of cobweb. It is a telepathic knot. If the Spectator would have the ability to smell the cobweb, they would have the spicy sent of Caryophyllene in their nose. As it is, they arespectating, so they reach out to the larger one of the two and make a connection.
A great number of impressions, of knowledge, of experiences are opening up to the spectator. Things no Leucauge has ever experienced before. How to fly a spaceship with and without telepathic interface, the best fences for art on Epsilon-Rho-619, the Polyergus, how to telepathically shield a room with lead, the fact that tophats make you fancy, at which space port you can get a oxygenator repaired when you’re in a pinch, how to hack into a security system, the most beautiful stature from Louise Bourgeois from earth, TARDISes and Time Lords, a warning about fear leeches and that you exchange strings as a greeting. Amongst the flood of much more information one message sticks out in particular: how a smile looks and that it’s an expression of joy.
The spectator breaks the connection. There are many more experiences, both large and small, stored to on the data knot, it would take quite a while to go through all it. Curiously, they reach out to the other data knot.
On the psychic knot is more information: The fact that the TARDIS hums back when you psychically sing to her, How to help Dissent do maintenance themself, how to sneak trail mix into Leela’s pockets without her noticing, the best way to climb up a high shelf to get a book for Verity, the Doctor’s happy telepathic signals when you give her a plant to cheer her up. How to hugs someone, because hugs are important. At the end of these impressions, there is a little message:
Friend, Sibling-in-the-TARDIS!
When you get this, then I have spun my last web and I go on alone. I am grateful for the time I could spend with you. Please, give the other psychic knot to my people feed the information on here into the TARDIS telepathic circuits. I want to do my part to weave the web of knowledge for future companions in the TARDIS. Just like my ancestor’s experiences where a boon to me, let me become one for future generations.
This is why I chose to be a traveler.
Do not pity me, I hatched for this.
Caryophyllene
The Spectator is torn out of the connection as suddenly, their computer jumps to a different application as an editor is opened in the background. Words start to appear on their screen:
Who are you and why have you trapped us here?