Bust of Pallas

The Bust of Pallas owned by Oscar Diggs during the Second Age of Eden acted as a universal translator for the tyrannical Wizard of Oz. First appearing in the closing pages of The Blood of Seven Queens: Prologue, the Bust allowed Diggs to communicate with people and animals alike. Because of this, he employed many a murder of crows and many an unkindness of ravens in his worldwide intelligence-gathering apparatus.

Construction

The artifact is a statue of the head and neck of Athena as she appeared at the end of the First Age, just before she helped sing a new reality into existence. It is crafted from white marble and closely resembles similar statues that would be crafted on Earth during each iteration of reality following the act of musical self-sacrifice carried by Athena and the rest of the Seven Voices.

Abilities

The bust allows any and all beings within a ten-foot radius to communicate fluently with one another regardless of differences in anatomy or communication style. No prior knowledge is necessary.

Cost

Extended use can result in fatigue, particularly if the method of communication being utilized requires the use of parts of one’s body that are not typically employed in such ways.

Limitations

Eavesdroppers outside of the range of the bust’s magic can only understand the parts of the conversation they would normally be able to understand. For instance, in the aforementioned Blood of Seven Queens: Prologue, the onlookers watching Oscar Diggs communicate with the raven by his chamber door could only understand Diggs—and only then when they could hear him over the sound of the thunderstorm that was raging.