Chert

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Chert is a Hearthian astronaut located at their camp at the north pole of Ember Twin. They are tasked with observing the galaxy and updating star charts. Their camp is filled with equipment used for astronomy. They play the drums.

Chert is an astronomer who is both knowledgeable and enthusiastic about their work. They are curious about the Nomai and the workings of the universe, and display some level of devotion to their job, commenting, “Sometimes I think I’m the only traveler out here interested in doing any science at all.” When spoken to early in the loop, they seem optimistic and excited about having seen more supernovae than usual. However, when spoken to later in the loop, they have watched more and more stars die out, and their conversation takes on a slightly more pessimistic tone as they wonder nervously what this might mean for their sun.

Dialogue

Early in loop

“Goodness, it’s you! Hello! I take it your first launch went well, then? Welcome to the Hourglass Twins. Mind the sand, now.”
- >I have a question for you.
  - “Tell me, what can I do for you?”
    - >I found something!
      - “Please, do tell!”
        >I found Nomai writing about a hidden planet.
        “How fascinating! It might interest you to know the existence of an additional planet is entirely plausible, if you look at the physics of our solar system. It would just have to be incredibly far out there - farther than Hearthian ships would be able to travel. And honestly, we don’t know all that much about what’s out there. The farther you go, the less we know! As such, it’s well within the realm of possibility such a planet exists.”
        
        >I found Nomai writing about the Quantum Moon.
        “Oh yes, everyone loves a good mystery, don’t they? Who wouldn’t wonder about a moon that’s sometimes there and sometimes not! I’ve observed the Quantum Moon orbiting each of the five planets, but sometimes, it quite simply disappears from the sky altogether. Maybe there’s another place it travels to! Unfortunately, if there is, I’ve never seen it. Perhaps if I take a closer look at these star charts…”
        
        >I found Nomai writing about the Sun Station.
        “Is that what’s in orbit around the sun, then, do you think? This… Sun Station? Quite clever of the Nomai to devise a way to study the sun up close and personal! It must have been tremendously difficult to construct. ...And hot inside. I can only imagine! I wonder how they were able to travel back and forth from the Sun Station and the Hourglass Twins, when the slightest slip up would have meant a fiery death.”
        
        >Actually, nevermind.
        “Nothing you’d like to discuss at the moment? That’s no trouble! If you do find something you wish to discuss, please, come find me! I’ll be here studying the stars for a while yet.”
    - >How do I know if I’ve spotted a supernova?
      - “Supernovae look like extra bright stars to the naked eye, but if you zoom in with your signalscope you can tell that they’re actually enormous explosions. Massive stars go supernova at the very end of their life spans, which is why it’s so unusual to see two in a single day. I wonder if some of these stars are older than we realized?”
    - >What are you doing out here?
      - “Right now I’m documenting stars. Hornfels noticed our star charts are out of date, so they asked me to update them. Please don’t tell the others I said this, but sometimes I think I’m the only traveler out here interested in doing any science at all. ...Er, maybe don’t tell Hornfels, either. I think they’re pretty deep in denial.”
    - >Where should I explore here?
      - “To be honest, I haven’t left this lakebed. I don’t mean to brag, but I’m really quite good with the Little Scout, so I’ve been taking pictures of everything from right here in my campsite. Have you seen the old shipwreck site on the Ember Twin’s southern hemisphere, the one shooting a bright beam of light into the sky? It’s not one of our own crashes, surprisingly enough — this one’s a Nomai ship. You’ll find Nomai ruins across the Twins, but, strangely, not a single settlement! Believe me, if there was one to see, I’d have seen it with my Little Scout. So where did they live? Not on the surface, clearly. The Ember Twin is full of cave systems, though — maybe the answer lies underground?”
    - >How dangerous is that big column of falling sand?
      - “On a scale of one to dead, I’d give it a seven or eight. Awfully pretty, though. Right now sand is flowing from Ash Twin to Ember Twin, but did you know the process eventually reverses? We’re not completely sure why the sand flows back and forth between the Twins, but it seems to be a natural phenomena. Oh, if you’d like to see something interesting, check out the other Twin once a little more of its sand drains off. I promise you won’t be disappointed.”
    - >Just saying hi.
      - “Watch out for falling sand, okay? I’ve had to dig myself out once or twice, and that’s not half as fun as it sounds.”
- >What are you up to?
  - “Hornfels asked me to update our star charts, so I’m out here observing. This is one of the best places in the solar system to spot astronomical events, you know. What’s weird is I’ve actually seen a couple of supernovae today. Usually, I’d be fortunate to see just one. Keep an eye or two on the stars, and maybe you’ll spot one yourself!”

Late in loop

“Hm? Oh, it’s you! I take it your first launch went well, then? Welcome to the Hourglass Twins. Mind the sand, now.”

>I have a question for you.
- “Was there something you needed?”
  - >I found something!
    - “Please, do tell!”
      - >I found Nomai writing about a hidden planet.
        “How fascinating! It might interest you to know the existence of an additional planet is entirely plausible, if you look at the physics of our solar system. It would just have to be incredibly far out there - farther than Hearthian ships would be able to travel. And honestly, we don’t know all that much about what’s out there. The farther you go, the less we know! As such, it’s well within the realm of possibility such a planet exists.”
      - >I found Nomai writing about the Quantum Moon.
        “Oh yes, everyone loves a good mystery, don’t they? Who wouldn’t wonder about a moon that’s sometimes there and sometimes not! I’ve observed the Quantum Moon orbiting each of the five planets, but sometimes, it quite simply disappears from the sky altogether. Maybe there’s another place it travels to! Unfortunately, if there is, I’ve never seen it. Perhaps if I take a closer look at these star charts…”
      - >I found Nomai writing about the Sun Station.
        “Is that what’s in orbit around the sun, then, do you think? This… Sun Station? Quite clever of the Nomai to devise a way to study the sun up close and personal! It must have been tremendously difficult to construct. ...And hot inside. I can only imagine! I wonder how they were able to travel back and forth from the Sun Station and the Hourglass Twins, when the slightest slip up would have meant a fiery death.”
      - >Actually, nevermind.
        “Nothing you’d like to discuss at the moment? That’s no trouble! If you do find something you wish to discuss, please, come find me! I’ll be here studying the stars for a while yet.”
  - >Why are so many stars going supernova?
    - “I have no idea! Massive stars go supernova when they reach the end of their life spans, so it’s possible that the stars are older than we realized. Or maybe our models are wrong and they don’t live as long as we expected. Honestly, I’m not fond of either option! If our charts are wrong, what else is wrong? And our sun… No, I shouldn’t jump to conclusions. I— I’m probably overlooking something. That’s it, I just need to collect more data.”
  - >What are you doing out here?
    - “Well, I was — that is, I originally came out here to update our star charts. Now, though, I’m trying to figure out what’s going on with the stars. There are so many — too many supernovae. Why are so many stars dying out? I’ve never seen anything like this. Frankly, I’m worried. And a little scared.”
  - >Where should I explore here?
    - “To be honest, I haven’t left this lakebed. I don’t mean to brag, but I’m really quite good with the Little Scout, so I’ve been taking pictures of everything from right here in my campsite. Have you seen the old shipwreck site on the Ember Twin’s southern hemisphere, the one shooting a bright beam of light into the sky? It’s not one of our own crashes, surprisingly enough — this one’s a Nomai ship. You’ll find Nomai ruins across the Twins, but, strangely, not a single settlement! Believe me, if there was one to see, I’d have seen it with my Little Scout. So where did they live? Not on the surface, clearly. The Ember Twin is full of cave systems, though — maybe the answer lies underground?”
  - >How dangerous is that big column of falling sand?
    - “On a scale of one to dead, I’d give it a seven or eight. Awfully pretty, though. Right now sand is flowing from Ash Twin to Ember Twin, but did you know the process eventually reverses? We’re not completely sure why the sand flows back and forth between the Twins, but it seems to be a natural phenomena. Oh, if you’d like to see something interesting, check out the other Twin once a little more of its sand drains off. I promise you won’t be disappointed.”
  - >Just saying hi.
    - “Watch out for the stars. I mean, sand.”
>What are you up to?
- “Hornfels noticed our star charts are out of date, so I came out here to update them. But something seems… how to put this… off. I’ve seen, what, ten supernovae by now? Twelve? They’re in the double digits now, and that’s, you know, not normal. Not normal at all…”

Ending

“The stars were beautiful, weren’t they? Even if our star is what ultimately killed us. I’ll wait here and remember them while you gather everybody.”

(after all travelers have been gathered):

“Shall I begin?”
- >Yes.
  - “Well, then, here I go!”
- >Not yet.
  - “Take your time! I don’t think there’s anything left to go supernova.”

After Campfire Song

“Even if it’s over now, I had a good time learning. But I think the rules are about to change.”

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