Identification #
The Lydian Stone is a nondescript, flat stone resembling a traditional "touchstone" or piece of natural slate. It was discovered by Ulysses in 2025 within a hidden, windowless study at a Pompeii excavation site.
Description #
When inactive, the Stone appears as a common mineral fragment. When active, it displays a distinct and unnatural blue luminescence across its surface. It facilitates a synchronized, 1:1 temporal connection: one day for the modern observer equals one day for the ancient contact. The Stone allows for the exchange of textual information and diagrams, though the exact mechanism of its operation remains unknown.
Provenance #
The Stone was found in a sealed chamber associated with the House of Gaius. In the ancient timeline, it was kept in a private study by Marcus. Its origin prior to the 1st century AD is a subject of intense speculation and archaeological mystery.
Function/Operation #
The Stone functions as an asymmetrical communication device. While it appears to be a "simulated" interface to Ulysses, it is a visceral reality for Marcus. It has been used to:
- Exchange Blueprints: Transferring modern mechanical schematics to the past.
- Coordinate Excavations: Marcus providing exact coordinates of buried artifacts to the present.
- Dating: Its activation synchronized the two timelines, creating the 1:1 divergence.
Scholarship/Variants #
Ulysses initially treated the Stone as a "strategy game" or simulation, a detachment that Lucia later challenged as he became more aware of the human cost of his interventions. Its name is derived from the historical use of Lydian stone (basanite) to test the purity of gold, a metaphor for the ethical "testing" of Ulysses' character.