Working out Defenses

It’s been about a week now since I’ve posted anything hasn’t it? Sorry. I’ve found myself a little busy lately. F&C’s been asking me a few good questions now about my defenses and I guess it got me to thinking. I mean, I have defenses in place, but most of them rely heavily upon experimental logic. I trust the logic is sound and have a good deal of faith in it(I think it’s probably important that I “believe” it works too). But when you really start to think about it... it really is just untested highly experimental theory. So kind of flimsy as a defense against an eldritch horror.

So I’ve taken a break from my normal reading the last few days to do some alternative research. I’m working on setting up a few things that may help me out a lot in the long term, but it’s going to take me a while to really get any of it done. It’s pretty important though, I think... because I may have defenses, but in the event that I actually have to defend myself, then what I really need is an Escape Plan. And prior to now, I didn’t really have one. Everything in Onewinged’s notes was focused on survivability within the bunker and the logic pertaining to its status as a safe zone. Leaving it never really comes into the equation, since leaving equals certain death.

That’s the fear at least... I guess. I feel like... now that I know... that if I were to open that door and step outside, that the extreme sense of paranoia brought on by the knowledge I now have, would summon the Construct to me the second I placed myself out in the open. And then that’d be the end of it. I mean, it’s almost a given. I’m out here in the middle of the god damned woods. HIS TERRITORY. The only thing keeping me safe is the fact that he doesn’t know I’m here and (hopefully still) isn’t looking for me.

Which brings me back to the logic part I guess...

I’m not going to sit here and list out all of my defenses. That’s just stupid. It’s common knowledge that Proxies and Agents and whatever else that’s out there read these blogs. I’m not going to sit here and broadcast all of my secrets in a public space and give them all the information they need to work out a means of fucking me over at every turn. I mean, for the time being anyways, I’d say that I sort of trust the few people presently aligned with the Construct who have spoken to me here. I mean, they’ve yet to really give me a good reason not to. But this is a weird world I’ve entered into and one of the only certainties I can discern from it is that “Things Change.” Plus, there could be more of them watching me that haven’t made themselves known yet... I’m not going to take that risk and piss away all of my advantages. If someone is going to come after me, then good fucking luck to them because I’m not going to say anything that could even remotely aid in their quest of finding and murdering me. Sorry.

But I will discuss what defenses I can that aren’t of a compromising nature. Especially since the knowledge could prove helpful to some on the run, and that’s kind of what I’m here to help with so... carrying on.

The basic logic I keep referring to as my prime defense lies heavily within the logic of M’s Rules. I touched on this a bit earlier in the comments when F&C happened to take notice of “The Joke.” One of the most important elements that The Tutorial stresses is the need to “Get Up High.” This logic is founded upon the nature of the Construct. M views the Constuct from the standpoint of any other naturally existing predator. As an animal acting upon instincts. I’ve certainly seen plenty of instances that indicate a fairly higher level of potential intelligence from the Construct than M would initially suggest, but in the long run, the concept still applies. It IS a Predator. Of a generally Parasitic variety I might add... but still an animal, the same as you or me... just with a much higher ahh... Threat Level? I dunno how to describe it. Basically just the fact that he’s capable of some crazy shit.

But just because he’s powerful and can influence others, possibly even communicate with them on some level, doesn’t mean he’s of human or higher level intelligence. I’d kind of like to make a Termors reference. The Grabboids weren’t really all that “smart” at all, they were just really good predators which were good at adapting to new situations. This fact, combined perhaps with just sheer dumb luck on the beast’s part, led the human’s hunted by them to initially assume that they were far more intelligent than they actually are. I believe similar forces may be at work here...

Tangent aside, this leads to the theory that the Construct doesn’t recognize entities which are located several stories higher than it to be human. Because humans are smaller than the Construct, it perceives anything “taller” than it to not be human. And perception is almost always the key with this thing...

Another, non-Tutorial example can be found when the Sage Shaun experimented with the Construct to determine if it preferred to appear in light or dark rooms. The test determined that the Construct prefers to appear in well lit rooms. This prompted the theory that he chooses the well lit rooms because humans are more likely to be found near such light sources. The Constuct knows his prey well and thus molds his perceptions of how and where to find us. He’s been doing this for quite some time after all. We’re rather predictable after a while I would suppose... so it all becomes instinctual. And instinctual perceptions rarely change.

As such, my current position takes these ideas and proposes an Anti-Thesis, “Get Down Low.” The concept being that if you’re down low enough, such as in a deep dark hole in the ground, then the Construct is just as likely not to perceive you as human. Human’s don’t live in holes or caves, not anymore anyways. So why would he seek out his prey there?

Certainly there are instances of him entering such underground locations, such as the “temple?” discovered by Damien O’Conner... but in instances such as this, the Construct only appears to be venturing into these locations because he was “Invited” to them previously. I plan to make no such invitations... <.<;

Secondly, as I shall explain again, is my status as an Unmarked Victim. The reason Onewinged didn’t try the bunker experiment himself is because he knew he was marked. That he was contaminated. And that to enter the bunker would simply cause that contamination to spread, rendering the location and his experiment useless. So though something of this particular nature may work well for someone like me, it seems less likely to be effective for someone already hunted by the Construct. As it seems as if hiding from him is a relative impossibility... like there is a beacon of some kind which draws him to you. But as I have no such mark, I remain effectively off its radar.

I’m not sure how long that will last however. Certainly I know of him now. So I’m... “Corrupted?” I suppose one might call it? But I don’t think that’s enough to draw him to me. I will note this specifically to Lady Elaine as perhaps one of those few things that Robert Sagel was correct about... even though it seems he never quite returned to elaborating on the matter... but the idea that simply knowing about the Construct is not enough to make a victim of yourself. There’s something more to it than that. Another step or two that must be taken before you become one of the hunted. And I’m certainly not sure what that is, but I am most certain that simply knowing Him is not enough. To believe such is quite literally stupid. It doesn’t make any sense.

I’ve read quite a few instances now and it’s never quite the same. Some will research the monster in depth, learning everything they can about him, and commenting on the blogs of runners about the creature... yet they themselves remain unstalked. They may even be actively TRYING (for some unreasonably perverse means) to attract the creature to themselves... yet still they remain unstalked for an extensive span of time before the Construct finally decides to take notice of them. Meanwhile, others may only just have become aware of him and barely know anything at all, yet they become stalked right away. And to add even more madness to the equation, there are those who know absolutely nothing about the Constuct at all prior to encountering it, yet still they have become one of the hunted. So not only is knowing about him not the only requirement for becoming a victim, but it may well not be a factor in the equation at all!

That being the case, I believe I may be much more well protected from the Construct than one would initially assume. The only connection I have to the creature at all is through Onewinged... and if the Construct took no interest in me prior to now, then it most likely remains uninterested. As such, I believe that I’m safe here. Outside of its reach. Outside of its vision.

....That’s what I’m going to keep telling myself anyways.