Info
Title: Object 23-ID - "Crying Statue"
Author: Marlin Paskalis
Translator: lemme
Release: 2024
Inspired by the story of the Crying Stone from West Kalimantan, although it does not use the same story.
{$title}Languages:
Object Number: 23-ID
Location: Outdoor
Description
Crying Statue is the designation for a series of sculptures characterized by the continuous discharge of water from their eyes. These statues lack a fixed morphology, varying significantly in depicted gender, height, artistic style, and age. However, the composition remains constant: white marble. Some survivors have reported vocalizations emanating from the statues such as "Sorry" or "I was wrong", though these claims remain unproven by empirical evidence.
A derivative form of this object is known as the Crying Stone. This refers to isolated fragments of the statue, specifically the eyes or the head, which retain the anomaly’s hydrological function. These stones are typically submerged in containers to serve as a localized water supply.
Property
The Crying Statue serves as a vital source of potable water for survivors. Consequently, several outposts have been established with these statues as their central hub. The discharge is confirmed to be clean, providing an average yield of 10 gallons per day. Survivors often integrate these statues with a no longer working Blue Pumps to facilitate water distribution.
Unfortunately, some individuals have resorted to gouging out the statue's eyes to create a portable water source. While this method proven successful, this practice is widely regarded as unethical. These extracted fragments are called Crying Stone as they no longer resemble a complete sculpture. Because of this, many Crying Statues have been damaged where they losing their eyes or heads.
The Crying Stone functions similarly to the full statue, but with decreased property. The water production decreases to approximately 7 gallons per day and the water carries a slightly bitter aftertaste. Once severed from the main body, a Crying Stone possesses a functional lifespan of 8–10 weeks before it becomes inert.
Discovery
Crying Statues began manifesting randomly around 2018 in places frequently visited by survivors. Initially dismissed as mundane decorative ornaments, their utility was discovered months later when survivors noticed the consistency of the "tears."
The first recorded instance of a Crying Stone occurred a year later, born out of a violent dispute between survivor factions over water rights. The conflict resulted in the destruction of a statue and the theft of its head. Upon realizing the head retained its anomalous properties, many survivors used this method as a source of portable water in the present day.