Difference between revisions of "Pattern"

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| Pattern{{book ref|sa2|60}}
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Like most spren currently living, Pattern has previously never bonded a Knight Radiant. He did not yet possess any awareness during the time of the [[Recreance]], and the Cryptics stopped bonding with humans for thousands of years after that event.{{book ref|sa2|75}}
Pattern was one of the first Cryptics to try to form a Nahel bond with a human in the current period, as a "guinea pig" of sorts.{{wob ref|5899}}
 
Eventually, it was decided that the Cryptics would once again bond humans. Pattern lobbied for the opportunity to be the first in this attempt and was nominated.{{wob ref|5899}}
 
=== Shallan's Childhood ===
Pattern bonded witha ShallanVeden whenchild shenamed wasShallan just a childDavar. At some point,With the bond had developed to, the pointyoung that Shallanchild could summoncreate Pattern[[Lightweaving|illusions asof a [[Shardbladelight]]. WhenBy a [[Skybreaker]] acolytethe persuadedtime Shallan's motherwas thateleven [[Surgebinder]]syears had to be killed{{book ref|sa3|40}}old, the eleven-year-oldbond Shallanhas hadprogressed to usethe Patternpoint tothat defendthe herself,young killingLightweaver hercould ownalready mothermix auditory and thevisual Skybreaker acolyte in the process.illusions{{book ref|sa2|8860}}, as well as summon Pattern as a [[Shardblade]].
 
When a [[Skybreaker]] acolyte persuaded Shallan's mother that [[Surgebinder]]s had to be killed{{book ref|sa3|40}}, the eleven-year-old Shallan had to use Pattern as a Shardblade to defend herself, killing her own mother and the Skybreaker acolyte in the process.{{book ref|sa2|88}}
 
After the traumatic event, [[Lin Davar|Shallan's father]] took Pattern's Shardblade form from Shallan and stored it inside a strongbox. This was ineffectual, as Pattern vanished from the strongbox the moment it closed, but from that day onward the strongbox appeared to glow in Shallan's eyes. Nobody else could see the glow, but she could see it even after a painting was was placed over the strongbox to hide it.{{book ref|sa2|10}}{{book ref|sa2|27}}
 
=== Retreat Into Shadesmar ===
The state of distress and shock caused by the incident with her mother led Shallan to resent Pattern and suppress her memories of him, causing their bond to weaken and Pattern to retreat mostly back into the [[Realmatic Theory#Cognitive Realm|Cognitive Realm]].{{wob ref| 5609}} After this, Shallan could no longer use Surgebinding,{{wob ref|5675}} though she could still use her enhanced mnemonic abilities. Although many of her memories of Pattern were repressed, she retained knowledge of having a Shardblade.{{book ref|sa1|8}}{{book ref|sa1|45}}
 
=== Kharbranth ===
[[File: Shallan and Cryptic.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Shallan fleeing from Cryptics, by [[Coppermind: Artist/Petar Penev|Petar Penev]].]]
WhenDespite having been forgotten, Pattern remained secretly by Shallan's side. When she departed from her family's estate to seek out [[Jasnah Kholin]], Pattern followed her. In [[Kharbranth]], he and other Cryptics watched over Shallan, although she could not see the spren directly as they were in the Cognitive Realm.
 
=== Bond Repaired ===
While sketching a portrait of [[Taravangian]], king of Kharbranth, Shallan unconsciously drew a couple of Cryptics who had been standing in the room invisible to the humans there. ShallanShe had used her mnemonic ability to assist her drawing, and the presence of the Cryptics were somehow included in the Memory.{{book ref|sa1|29}} It is likely that Pattern was one of the Cryptics.
 
Several weeks later, while Shallan puzzled over the [[Soulcaster]] alone in her room, Pattern spoke to herShallan, attempting to obtain a new Truth. Her memories of her spren still repressed, Shallan was alarmed by the disembodied voice,.{{book butref|sa1|42}} dismissedLater theon sound,Cryptics reasoningappeared withonce herselfagain thatwhen itShallan haddrew beena causedportrait byof the[[Kabsal]]. maidPanicked, whoShallan hadfled, beenand cleaningthe inCryptics thefollowed her to her room, nextwhere doorshe attempted summon her Shardblade to protect herself.{{book ref|sa1|4245}}
 
The day before she was scheduled to return to her family's estate in [[Jah Keved]], Shallan again interacted with Pattern. After breaking the news to [[Kabsal]] that she would be leaving, the [[ardent]] requested a portrait as she had not yet created one of him. Like with her sketch of Taravangian, Shallan unconsciously added several Cryptics into the background of the drawing. Panicked, she fled the room, taking Memories as she went and drawing the scenes as a way to track the spren. Pattern and his associates followed Shallan to her room within the guest quarters, where she attempted summon her Shardblade to protect herself. This act of summoning her spren (even unintentionally) changedwas theira situationsignificant somehowevent{{wob ref|5675}}, andas through it Pattern succeeded in getting a Truth out of Shallan. Their bond strengthened, Shallan used Surgebinding once again, entering Shadesmar and Soulcasting a goblet into blood.{{book ref|sa1|45}}
 
Pattern obtained another Truth from Shallan days later, when she wanted to enter Shadesmar again, although Shallan did not have enough Stormlight at the time and had to be saved by Jasnah.{{book ref|sa1|70}}
Pattern and his fellow Cryptics continued to follow Shallan while she was in the hospital. During her stay on the ward, Shallan noticed the spren several times, adding them to sketches she did of the room. Later, after she had been moved to a private room, she also found them lurking, whispering to her, though she chose not to respond. Shallan called on Pattern to help her transition to the Cognitive Realm when she confronted Jasnah about the fake soulcaster, and confessed to him that she had killed her father. Pattern accepted the Truth and Shallan's mind was transported to the Cognitive. After nearly drowning in the sea of beads, Shallan was saved by Jasnah who brought her back to her body in the [[Physical Realm]].{{book ref|sa1|48}}{{book ref|sa1|70}}
 
=== TheReturn Wind'sto Pleasurethe Physical Realm ===
Their bond strengthened by Shallan's Truths, Pattern transitioned once more from the Cognitive Realm to the Physical, losing much of his mind in the process. Several days afterWhile Shallan and Jasnah had set sail from Kharbranth, Shallan saw Pattern's Physical form while she sketched onfor the deck[[Shattered ofPlains]] the ship. Seeing a pattern rising like an embossment fromaboard the page[[Wind's of her sketchpadPleasure]], Shallan did not initially understand that she was interacting withsaw the Cryptic,'s thinkingPhysical insteadform thatseveral shetimes, hada done something herself or that thecomplex pattern hadlike appearedan asembossment a side affect of drawing the Cognitive Realm. Pattern moved, disappearingrising from thea drawing when Shallan touched the page,surface and caused the young woman to jumpfloating in fright.the A while later he was seen once more by Shallan as she spoke with Jasnahair, thisappearing time floating on a wave. Again he vanished, seen only for abriefly briefbefore momentvanishing.{{book ref|sa2|1}}
 
{{sidequote
|side=left|size=300px|
}}
Pattern continued to appear to Shallan, vanishing whenever she caught a glimpse of him until she finally managed to capture him in a Memory while reading in her cabin. Her subsequent sketch, which attracted hundreds of [[creationspren]], seemingly helped to anchor Pattern, and he was able to completely transition from the Cognitive. Like all radiant spren when they first enteredenter the Physical Realm, the journeytransition damaged Pattern, who lostlosing much of his cognitive abilities becoming non-sapient and mindless.becoming Like [[Syl]], Pattern initially acted playfully, reminiscent of a young child exploring the world. After Jasnah joined Shallan in her cabin, the young proto-Lightweaver tried to interact with the spren, poking him with a pencilinfantile and foundalmost that he responded much like an animal might in the same situationmindless.{{book ref|sa2|3}}
 
=== Mutual Learning ===
Jasnah, after learning what she could from Shallan, had looked further into the symbol headed spren that had followed her ward around in Kharbranth. She mentioned to Shallan that most spren manifested differently in the Physical to how they did in the Cognitive, evidenced by the different form Pattern took after transitioning. Both scholars agreed that Pattern was of the same order as the symbol heads that Shallan had encountered previously, although later Shallan wondered whether this particular spren had been with her in the City of Bells. Pattern's childlike behaviour and lack of intelligence disappointed the women though Jasnah suggested that he simply needed more time to regain his mind. The spren called themselves Cryptics, Jasnah explained, though they would likely be called liespren if seen by other humans - a name of which they themselves were not fond. Jasnah likened the Cryptics to [[lighteyes]], the rulers of at least one of the great cities in the Cognitive. Shallan postulated that Pattern was similar to a spren prince, though Jasnah was not sure as she had not been able to delve far into spren politics. Jasnah tasked Shallan to study her spren, pointing out that she was likely the first person in centuries that had the opportunity to interact and learn from the Cryptics. In his diminished state, Pattern was hardly impressive to Shallan, who half-heartedly agreed to Jasnah's orders to spend the next few days studying the spren.{{book ref|sa2|3}}
{{quote
 
{{sidequote
| The Cryptics have a fearful reputation, and yet this one – the first specimen I’ve ever seen – seems . . . ‘Imbecilic?’ Shallan asked.
| Jasnah and Shallan discussed Pattern{{book ref|sa2|3}}
|side=right|size=300px|
}}
When Jasnah learned of Shallan's discovery, they discussed about the nature of spren, particularly the Cryptics, and she ordered Shallan to spend the next few days studying the pattern-like spren.{{book ref|sa2|3}}
 
From then on, Shallan and Pattern started studying each other and learning from each other. With his mind still recovering from his transition into the Physical Realm, Pattern was initially quite child-like in both speech and thought. Shallan taught him various concepts that were alien to him, like the concept of eating, that he struggled to grasp.{{book ref|sa2|6}} However, he started learning, and as his memories and intelligence slowly returned, his knowledge of Surgebinding and Shadesmar became useful, and he started guiding Shallan in both Lightweaving and Soulcasting.
Initially, worried what the sailors would think of the spren, Shallan tried to keep both herself and Pattern contained to her room, though quickly abandoned the plan. Similarly, Pattern had not responded to her suggestions to stay inside and hidden and soon became known to the other occupants of the ship, who found the Cryptic discomforting. Four days after his transition found Pattern on the deck of the ship with Shallan. Using [[limafruit]] as an example, Shallan attempted to explain to him the concept of food and eating. Following her lead, Pattern tried some of fruit, and became horrified when he realised that it involved the destruction of the food consumed.{{book ref|sa2|6}}
 
While the spren had problems with understanding simple tasks such as eating, Shallan had found him to take readily to complex thought, particularly abstraction. Even as he struggled to form coherent sentences, Pattern was able to understand the concepts of truth and lies as well as identify lies told by others. Pattern was pleased by the lies [[Yalb]] told aboard the ''[[Wind's Pleasure]]'', deeming them to be good lies as they were based in truth. Similarly, while he himself could not remember much, he grasped the concept of memory quickly, prompting Shallan to begin to remember a time from long ago, when they had first known one another. Without meaning to, Shallan used [[stormlight]] and turned a patch of the deck of the ship green, as she began to recreate the memory. Horrified, she pushed the memories away, unable to think on that time without panicking.{{book ref|sa2|6}}
Some time later, Shallan went to find Jasnah to borrow some of the woman's infused sphere's for light to read by. Surprised to find Jasnah without her mask of composure, Shallan tried to sneak away without being seen, however was given away by Pattern. Though Jasnah initially tried to placate Shallan and send her away, the young woman stayed to talk. Pattern watched over the conversation silently as the women discussed [[Urithiru]], the [[Shattered Plains]] and the [[Voidbringers]]. When Shallan retired to her rooms to sleep, Pattern accompanied her.{{book ref|sa2|6}}
 
[[File:Pattern.jpeg|200px|thumb|left|A page from Shallan's sketchbook depicting her spren Pattern, by [[Coppermind: Artist/Ben McSweeney|Ben McSweeney]].]]
 
Throughout their journey towards the Shattered Plains, and even afterwards, both Shallan's handling of her Lightweaving powers and Pattern's understanding of human behavior slowly grew with each other's assistance. Aside from Surgebinding, Shallan found creative ways of utilizing Pattern's unique nature, from espionage{{book ref|sa2|15}} to trickery through voice mimicry.{{book ref|sa2|34}} Pattern also found that he could disengage locking mechanisms{{book ref|sa2|52}} and translate ancient texts{{book ref|sa2|47}} for Shallan, as these things have patterns that he could easily understand.
Shallan was woken by screams and the scent of smoke. When she went to see what had happened she accidentally drew the attention several assassins after she witnessed one of them stab Jasnah through the chest. When she tried to hide in her room, Pattern pushed her to summon him as a [[Shardblade]], however Shallan refused instead creating an illusion of herself with Pattern's help. Pattern followed the men as they gave chase to Shallan's illusion which escaped past them and moved onto the deck of the ship before jumping overboard. Above, he found the crew members of the ''Wind's Pleasure'', one of them dead and the rest tied up and at the mercy of the attackers. Pattern returned below, leaving the men he had been following to search the water where the illusion had disappeared and joined Shallan as she moved to Jasnah's room to check on her.{{book ref|sa2|7}}
 
===The Truth of the Shardblade===
They found no body within the room. In the distance, Shallan could hear the ships crew being executed and to buy them time asked Pattern for his help in Soulcasting the boat. Pattern was confused by Shallan's decision, not understanding the logic behind her actions, however helped her see into the Cognitive. She was startled to see him in his cognitive form, and for a moment did not realize that the symbol headed creature was her spren. Pattern urged her to find the glassy sphere for the boat and acted as a translator between Shallan and the object, claiming she was not yet ready to speak with it directly. She successfully convinced the boat to change and was pulled back into the physical realm. The ship collapsed into water and she was pulled deeper into the ocean away from the surface.{{book ref|sa2|7}}
Although Pattern and Shallan's relationship seemed healthy, there were several problems. First, because of the events of the [[Recreance]], Pattern believes that Shallan will one day break her Oaths and kill him.{{book ref|sa2|17}} The fact that Shallan repressed her memories of Pattern for so long probably contributed to this as well.
 
Pattern and Shallan survived the sinking ship, and Shallan was carried ashore by the [[Santhid]] she had seen several days prior. Unwilling to sit and freeze, Shallan moved down the coast to try and find shelter of some kind and Pattern wandered off ahead. Further up the coast, he found one of Jasnah's trunks, which had been washed ashore. Excited, Pattern raced back to Shallan to get her attention before he brought her to where he had found the trunk.{{book ref|sa2|11}}
 
Within the trunk, Shallan found not only Jasnah's books and research but a number of infused sphere's, one of which she tried to use to Soulcast a fire. Unlike her previous ventures into the Cognitive, Shallan was able to hover between the Realms instead of falling through and becoming trapped amongst the sea of spheres. Returning to the Realm reminded Pattern that it was where he had once resided, though he could not remember much of his time there. Being in the Cognitive made Pattern anxious and he appealed for Shallan to hurry in her endeavor. As he had done previously, Pattern translated for Shallan, acting as an intermediary between the Lightweaver and the stick she wished to turn into fire. The stick refused and Shallan and Pattern slipped back into the Physical Realm.{{book ref|sa2|11}}
 
Her attempt at building a fire a failure, Shallan decided to walk inland, Pattern at her feet and eventually the pair stumbled upon the campsite of [[Tvlakv]] and his fellow slavers, where Shallan, exhausted, collapsed. The next morning, Shallan insisted that the slavers help her get to the Shattered Plains, while Pattern watched on silently from his place unseen on the side of the slavers wagon. Tvlakv reluctantly agreed and after fetching Jasnah's trunk, Pattern and Shallan began their journey north.{{book ref|sa2|11}}
 
=== Journey to the Shattered Plains ===
 
To not alert their travelling companions to his presence, Pattern stayed out of sight, hidden as per Shallan's request. When the caravan stopped for the midday meal, Shallan asked to be relocated to the empty slave cart where she could rest and relax away from prying eyes and the heat of the sun. Inside she found Pattern waiting, hidden within Jasnah's trunk which had been moved inside the empty cage.{{book ref|sa2|13}}
 
Pattern, eager to learn more about human reasoning, was curious as to why Shallan had decided to continue on to the Shattered Plains and try to seek Urithiru. Shallan explained she had fallen into the trap of seeing Jasnah's research as a theoretical puzzle that needed to be solved, ignoring the real world ramifications that could occur if they were to fail. Her words reminded Pattern of why he had initially sought out Shallan, though his memories were vague and incomplete. The Cryptics, worried about the return of the [[Desolation]]s, had sent Pattern to bond with Shallan, who had been chosen because of her lies about her family. Shallan diverted the topic when Pattern tried to have her remember her past, unwilling to think about the time. When she found one of her drawings in the bottom of Jasnah's trunk, her first drawing of the [[Alethi]] princess, Shallan broke down in tears. Pattern offered her comfort and did what he could to help her through her grief, as the weight of what she had been through and what she had lost, finally settling onto her.{{book ref|sa2|13}}{{wob ref| 5899}}
 
{{sidequote
| I will not stop vibrating. The wind will not stop blowing. You will not stop drawing.
| Pattern comforting Shallan{{book ref|sa2|13}}
|side=left|size=350px|
}}
 
Several days later, Pattern was sent to spy on a conversation between the Tvlakv and one of his men. [[Tag]] had worried about the trouble Shallan could cause and suggested that they should abandon her and move on, however, Tvlakv disagreed, instead seeing the opportunity to hold her hostage and earn a reward. Pattern's report worried Shallan, who was uncomfortable at how Tvlakv viewed her as little more than a slave. To preempt the possibility that his behavior would begin to match his thinking, Shallan confronted the slaver, insinuating she was aware of his scheming and reminding him of her promise of payment. [[Bluth]] returned as the exchange ended, reporting that mercenaries were in the area and prompting the group to hurried break camp to try and get away.{{book ref|sa2|15}}
 
Their efforts were unsuccessful and it soon became apparent that the caravan was being followed. As they passed into a more frequently travelled part of the [[Frostlands]], a second smoke signal was spotted in front of the party, which Tvlakv, reluctantly, began to head towards at Shallan's insistence. Decision made, Shallan chose to travel in her quasi-carriage so she could speak with Pattern, who had once again hidden inside, away from the slavers. Unsure of how she had been unconsciously Lightweaving she asked Pattern for his help, however in his diminished state, he was unable to give her any useful suggestions. Shallan eventually managed to inhale the Stormlight and while they talked learned that the spren was a scholar sent to study her. Unintentionally, Pattern began to mention that he only had a limited amount of time in which to learn of humans, before cutting himself off. He attempted to pass the comment off with a lie, but when pressed by Shallan, admitted he was expecting to be killed by the young woman. Shallan was shocked, not understanding why Pattern would have this idea, however related it to what had happened centuries ago with the [[Knights Radiant]]. Pattern's mention of Shallan's past oaths caused her to break off their conversation and she returned above to ride with Bluth.{{book ref|sa2|17}}
 
Eventually they caught up to the group they had seen in the distance, and found another group of caravaners, who had recently been attacked by bandits. When the bandits returned, Shallan took Bluth and confronted the soldiers that had been following them. In exchange for their protection and help against the bandits, she promised to absolve them of their debts once they had reached the Shattered Plains. Their leader, [[Vathah]], resisted her attempts to recruit them, however the other men did not and moved off to help defend the caravans. After the battle, Vathah - distrusting of Shallan and disbelieving of her promises - angrily confronted her. Pattern calmly interceded, hidden on the back of Vathah's uniform so as to fool the man into thinking he was hearing voices. Shallan played along, pretending that she was unaware of Pattern's presence and shortly after the soldier stormed away.{{book ref|sa2|20}}{{book ref|sa2|21}}
 
{{sidequote
| Truth is individual. Your truth is what you see. What else could it be? That is the truth that you spoke to me, the truth that brings power.
| Pattern discussing the meaning of truth with Shallan{{book ref|sa2|24}}
|side=right|size=300px|
}}
 
For a long time, Shallan's mind refused to register anything Pattern said that had anything to do with their past experiences together before her mother's death, as she was actively suppressing those memories. She also insisted to herself that her Shardblade needed ten heartbeats to summon just like most Shardblades at the time, refusing to associate the Shardblade with Pattern even when she was in grave danger, as when [[Tyn]] was attacking her{{book ref|sa2|36}} or when she and Kaladin encountered a chasmfiend.{{book ref|sa2|71}}
The highstorm came later that night. The storm agitated Pattern, who buzzed angrily and ranted in a foreign tongue, spooking the soldiers whom Shallan had invited to shelter in her cart. None of the men, however, brought up the incident, which Shallan attributed to their expectation for strangeness during the highstorm. The next day, Pattern debated the meaning of 'truth' with Shallan, who found herself frustrated with the biases shown by past scholars. Pattern disagreed with Shallan's assessment that truth was universal, instead claiming that it was based on an individuals experiences. Shallan's questions shifted the conversation towards the existence of spren and in turn to the Voidbringers. Pattern, despite being unwilling to speak on the topic, named [[Odium]] as a third influence on types of spren, though doing so distressed him greatly.{{book ref|sa2|24}}
 
Upon discovering the [[Oathgate]] in the ruins of [[Stormseat]] and finding that a Shardblade was required for it to work, Shallan soon realized that dead Shardblades could not activate the Oathgate. In order to save herself and the Alethi army, she was forced to face the reality that Pattern was her Shardblade. Speaking this new Truth, she used Pattern on the Oathgate to transport the whole army to [[Urithiru]].{{book ref|sa2|88}}
As they neared the Shattered Plains, the group happened across a miniature [[lait]] filled with plants, protected from the storms by a rocky windbreak. Pattern accompanied Shallan as she explored the spot of greenery, occupying himself with counting leaves while she sketched. Later that night, the highstorm came again, however, unlike the last storm, which had caused Pattern agitation, this one caused him fear. There was something wrong about the storm and despite Shallan's attempts, Pattern would not stay quiet, frightening the slaves who sheltered with them.{{book ref|sa2|30}}{{book ref|sa2|32}}
 
Once they had all moved into the ancient city, Pattern executed a plan to make Shallan say a powerful Truth, believing that Shallan needed to be stronger now that the [[Desolation]] has come. He convinced [[Adolin]] to give Shallan a room that resembled the room where her mother died. When Shallan entered it, he covered the room in an illusion of the death scene. Understanding what she had to do, Shallan started to recount the events of that day, how she killed her own mother, how her father took the blame, and how that led to her father's downfall and the destruction of their family. Shallan ended by stating how she hated Pattern and how she wanted her family back.{{book ref|sa2|88}}
Eventually, the storm passed and Shallan met with Tyn to learn what she could of her homeland. Within the message sent by Tyn's associates, relayed via a communication station in [[Tashikk]], was information about the attack on Jasnah and the ''Wind's Pleasure''. Tyn, who had been hired by the [[Ghostblood]]s to assassinate the Alethi princess, attacked Shallan when she learned of her identity, with the intention to kill her. Pattern attempted to intervene, impersonating Jasnah to try and distract Tyn while Shallan escaped.{{book ref|sa2|34}}
 
After this, Shallan was no longer able to forget the memory of killing her mother no matter how hard she tried. This was apparently something that happens to Truths spoken by Lightweavers.{{book ref|sa3|13}} Pattern felt guilty for what he did, and even offered to have himself killed so that another Cryptic could take his place. Nonetheless, Shallan tried to bring her relationship with Pattern back to normal, although she still hated using him as a Shardblade. Eventually, she created an illusory persona she called Radiant to take her place whenever she had to wield the Shardblade.{{book ref|sa3|15}}
When it became apparent that Tyn would not allow Shallan to get away, Pattern hastened to find Vathah to bring him and his men to Shallan's aid. The men did not understand that it had been Pattern speaking to them, though Shallan later confirmed his existence, however they still obeyed, attacking Tyn's soldiers who blocked their way. Pattern was pulled back to the tent when Shallan summoned him as a Shardblade, killing Tyn.{{book ref|sa2|34}}
When Vathah and his men reached the tent, they found Shallan, Patternblade in hand, who instructed them to search Tyn's belongings.{{book ref|sa2|34}}{{book ref|sa2|36}}
 
== Abilities and Attributes ==
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