The Strange Bestiary
The artificial intelligence calling itself Cinticus Z is a free-floating wheel of bright yellow light 6 feet (2 m) in diameter. Images randomly flicker within the ring, though Cinticus can choose to keep the interior dark, or display specific images. Cinticus Z speaks by vibrating the exterior of its ring like a speaker, producing almost any sound it desires.
The automaton spends most of its existence in the Strange, but the images it displays within its circle interior can be tuned to show what's going on within any recursion that Cinticus Z has previously visited. If it desires, those images can sharpen to lifelike immediacy, because Cinticus is nothing less than an intelligent, free-roaming inapposite gate that can choose not only what it looks at, but where it opens, and who or what it pulls out of or drops through its interface.
Motive: Unknown
Environment (the Strange): Anywhere
Health 21
Damage Inflicted: Moderate wound (7 points)
Armor: 4
Movement: Long
Modifications: All knowledge tasks as level 8.
Combat: Cinticus Z seldom engages in combat.
When it does, it prefers to produce allies through its inapposite gate body to fight for it. It can produce one randomly determined ally (level 1d6+1) per round in this fashion.
Cinticus can also attack two foes within short range at once by discharging electrical energy. As part of the same action or a separate action, it can make a melee attack that is essentially an attempt to swallow a single foe; a target that fails a Speed defense roll is pulled through the inapposite gate and appears in whatever recursion Cinticus chooses. A target pulled through has one round to attempt to re-emerge through the closing gate, requiring a Speed-based task to dart back through, or be stranded in the chosen recursion until he can find another way out (assuming he survives whatever the recursion has to offer first).
Finally, Cinticus can use its own portal to travel and spend an action to leave any conflict it would rather avoid.
Interaction: Cinticus Z isn't normally a hostile entity. It mostly has access to what it wants and needs, but it has been known to approach recursors and ask them (with a perfectly humanlike voice and manner) to acquire brachistochrone dust. On the other hand, it remains completely silent on all questions regarding its origin, its purpose, and why it needs such dust.
Use: Cinticus Z soon learns when first-time recursors travel into the Strange, and the construct makes it a point to meet them, usually on the pretense of asking them to do something for it. This task may be as simple as scouting a new beacon or as complex as cleaning out a major inkling infestation. As a reward, the construct offers an artifact that it draws from a random recursion.
Loot: Cinticus is an artifact, though the only way for a PC to access its power is to either bind the construct or persuade it to shrink down to ring size and accompany the PC. Such an arrangement lasts for only a few days at most.
GM Intrusion: A PC charging or otherwise quickly approaching the construct miscalculates and passes through the inapposite gate to whatever recursion Cinticus Z was showing at the time.