F.F. Gebrandt

From The Fifth City Wiki
Revision as of 22:07, 6 February 2025 by KestrelGirl (talk | contribs) (Some citations will need to be filled in later.)

"General consensus has it that she is Fallen London's greatest chemist. A substantial minority would say she is the city's most shrewd industrialist."[1]

F.F. Gebrandt is widely regarded as London's greatest chemist and industrialist.

The Polymath

"F.F. Gebrandt is a valuable sounding-board, gently pushing and pulling on you until you reach your conclusions. Even if this is not her field of study, she has an ease for recalling facts and making connections."[2]

F.F. Gebrandt is a pioneer of scientific progress, frequently collaborating with notable researchers[3] to refine her tonic formulas.[4] Her dedication to scientific progress is encapsulated in her belief that "science is a team pursuit." She rejects the notion of the lone genius, advocating instead for collaboration as the true driver of societal advancement.[5] Her business ventures are also numerous, and she maintains extensive connections;[6][7] she recently launched a new enterprise — F.F. Gebrandt’s Standard Aerial Transit Company[8] — offering airship tours to the Roof of the Neath.[9]

F.F. Gebrandt's Patent Neathoscope, Containing and Displaying All Seven Colours of Exotic Light

Gebrandt is the inventor of several renowned products, all labeled with her name. These include, but are not limited to:

  • Medicines: Tincture of Vigour, Superior Laudanum, Milk of Magnesia (a laxative)[10]
  • Food and drink: Incorruptible Biscuits,[11] Superior Lager (apparently not very good)[12]
  • Industrial products: Verdant Stimulator (a powerful and technically illegal fertilizer),[13] Flame-Resilient Paper (created as a result of her research on the Correspondence),[14] Superior Postal Adhesive (requires a license to use),[15] Patent Illuminating Cap (a miner's cap equipped with a tiny glim-lamp that shines colors of the Neathbow)[16]
  • Patent Neathoscope, Containing and Displaying All Seven Colours of Exotic Light (a prism that refracts the colors of the Neathbow)[17]
  • Cylindrical Phénakistiscope (a device that creates an illusion of motion when spun, resulting in an apparent looping animation)[18]

Gebrandt is an active public figure. She is an occasional guest at the University's Department of Infernal Rarefactions, where she lectures, engages with attendees on scientific matters,[19] and may attend others' lectures herself.[20] She also runs an advice column, offering medical and relationship guidance,[21] with questions selected to ensure broad applicability to her readership.[22] When overwhelmed, she employs ghostwriters to assist with responses, though all advice is subject to her final approval.[23] Her column subtly promotes her tonics, reinforcing her business interests.[24][25] Additionally, Gebrandt has founded a "church," though it functions more as a gathering place for academics rather than a site of worship.[26]

Her laboratory on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by acrid fumes, is her home base for experiments and a meeting point with those who pique her interest.[27] Gebrandt once had a business partnership with Mr Wines,[28] and is familiar with Mr Spices' health status.[29] The Masters of the Bazaar still bother her for her expertise,[30] but she dislikes them greatly[31] and has no qualms about divulging their trade secrets.[28] It is implied that her rapid rise to prominence was due to the Masters' backing, but their coercion — particularly in forcing her to develop a love potion (which she abhorred and deliberately sabotaged) — led to her departure.[32] Her advice column was conceived as a response to this event.[citation needed]

During the Coilheart Games, Gebrandt collaborated with the Tigers to host a yard sale[33] and served as a judge in a Tournament of Intellect side competition.[34] At the annual Fruits of the Zee Festival on Mutton Island, she established a traveling exhibition to promote her Prelapsarian Exhibition and conduct toxicological research.[35] She invited festival-goers to assist in experiments replicating the unique properties of Mutton Island’s well water, assessing its viability as a commercial product and remaining unconcerned with its sacred status.[36]

Paleontological Prominence

"I'm going to nurture the flame of London's imagination. Provide palaeontological education – to start with, a museum to learn from and contribute to. Encourage explorations, help Londoners discover things that have never been seen before. As they grow addicted to the joy of discovery, London shall learn, and rise up on its newfound knowledge."[37]

In addition to her passion for chemistry, Gebrandt is keenly interested in paleontology,[38] which became a significant focus of her 1898 campaign for Lord Mayor of London. Running under the slogan "Science Serving Society," her platform emphasized the use of scientific advancements — in her two favorite fields, naturally — to benefit the city's populace.[39] As an initial step, she proposed the establishment of a museum dedicated to paleontology, with the goal of providing education, sparking the interest and curiosity of Londoners of all ages and backgrounds, and eventually driving scientific progress.[40] Her grander ambitions involved reviving extinct creatures to ease the burdens of the working class, a distinctly Prehistoricist ideal.[41] She was careful to clarify that she did not intend to "bring dinosaurs back;" rather, she aimed to advance paleontological research and push back against traditionalism.[42] Gebrandt's campaign was managed by a notable Aunt and a formidable squad of spinsters.[43]

When questioned about the potential for self-interest, Gebrandt pointed out that the people best-equipped to be representatives in a democracy are already wealthy, and the people best-equipped to win an election are already powerful.[44] To her, self-interest was an unavoidable issue — but she claimed great confidence in being able to overcome her own biases, whereas her opponents would not even admit to theirs.[45] In a bid to rally support, she campaigned at the Bone Market[46] and distributed Augmented Electrostatic Machines to her backers: devices capable of converting mechanical energy into electrical energy.[47] She ultimately finished second, well behind the Viscountess of the Viric Jungle;[48] she considered the loss a failure, both on her part and on London's.[49] In a possible future where she won the election, London would have experienced an economic and scientific boom, but Gebrandt would eventually tire of her mayoral position, abolishing it entirely to go back to doing science.[50]

The Museum of Prelapsarian History

"F.F. Gebrandt CORDIALLY INVITES All Londoners to participate in the Raising of a New Museum of Prelapsarian History & accompanying Exhibition, to put on Display Curiosities Historical, Palaeontological, & Philosophical."[51]

Despite her electoral defeat, Gebrandt fulfilled one of her campaign promises two years later. In the summer of the second year of 1899, she spearheaded the establishment of the Museum of Prelapsarian History in Veilgarden. This initiative, known as the Prelapsarian Exhibition, invited Londoners to transform an abandoned estate into a museum and contribute exhibits of historical, paleontological, and philosophical significance.[52]

However, the museum’s opening was marked by unforeseen consequences. Under the directive of the Empress, Gebrandt constructed a time machine of sorts,[53] designed to summon an apparition of the Prince Consort.[54] When the machine overloaded, she attempted to intervene but was stopped by the Empress.[55] The resulting malfunction led to the sudden appearance of Second City structures in London and unleashed ushabtiu — animated stone constructs — throughout the city, causing widespread chaos.[56] Gebrandt quickly took control of the situation, calling upon the citizenry to assist in resolving the crisis.[57] She devised a plan to lure the ushabtiu through a mirror into Parabola, where they would cease to be London's problem. Manufacturing vast quantities of a specially formulated perfume,[58] she deployed it across the city, drawing the ushabtiu into Parabola before smashing the mirror to ensure they could not return.[59]

When questioned at the Fruits of the Zee Festival about her involvement in the incident, Gebrandt deflected responsibility, blaming the Empress' intervention as discreetly as possible to avoid legal trouble.[60]

Personal Life

"He is my closest friend, and the person I trust the most. That's better than most marriages."[61]

Gebrandt is in a platonic marriage of convenience with her best friend, ensuring that societal expectations do not hinder her scientific pursuits.[62] As a result, she is unbothered by dalliances outside of marriage.[63] She implies that she remembers the Regretful Soldier fondly; they may have had a relationship at one point.[64]

She harbors a disdain for Parabola, viewing it as antithetical to scientific principles. Consequently, her Parabolan reflection remains identical to her real self.[65]

References

  1. ↑ Rely on F.F. Gebrandt. Fallen London
  2. ↑ Get her opinion on your research, Fallen London
  3. ↑ Invite F.F. Gebrandt to Collaborate, Fallen London "[...] She was clearly expecting you to call on her. "I can't say no to a collaborator with your... particular breadth of expertise." She's staring at a liquid in a flask – no, eyeing you through the reflection [...]"
  4. ↑ Aid F.F. Gebrandt in Refining her Formulas, Fallen London "You work well together, and she seems happy with your progress, even though the improvements are minute; tiny amounts of reagents saved here or there, small increases in purity. How much Tincture of Vigour does she sell each year?"
  5. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt (Card), Fallen London "[…] F.F. is […] answering the more complex questions […]. Where her supporters are, so is she. "Science is a team pursuit," she says. "The lone genius nonsense is exactly that. We can only advance science, and thus society, together."
  6. ↑ Discuss business – yours, specifically, Fallen London "Of course, if you're looking for a good source of lamplighter wax, you want to avoid the sellers who supply the University. I can put you in touch with a merchant who brings a shipment of the stuff from Apis Meet every three months..."
  7. ↑ Enter an agreement for the production of steel, Fallen London "Gebrandt has an arrangement with the Iron & Misery company – she can synthesize the reagents needed to refine Surface-grade steel, but she will not reveal her method to them. […] she will allow you to purchase some of the […] output at a steep discount..."
  8. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt's Standard Aerial Transit Company, Fallen London
  9. ↑ Converse at the edge of a precipice, Fallen London "She hands you a recent edition of the Gazette. […] columns of uninterrupted Roof coverage. […] probably written entirely from a garret near Doubt Street. […] "London is […] on the precipice of a new fad: Roof mania. When that arrives, I want to be selling tickets. […]"
  10. ↑ Send him out to the dispensary, Fallen London "You're in luck. The pharmacist has a stock of Mrs Gebrandt's new remedy, Milk of Magnesia. A spoonful later, your terrier is much restored. Enough to tell you something he learned while acquiring the hangover in the first place."
  11. ↑ Secure a shipment of dubiously preserved food, Fallen London "Gebrandt's biscuits are the most impervious food in the market: […] in the mouth, they shatter into shards that scratch and claw at your palate. The mushrooms (preserved into tins and heated until they become mush) are similarly permanent."
  12. ↑ Buy a round of F.F. Gebrandt's Superior Lager, Fallen London "Gebrandt's attempts […] have met with mixed results; patrons grimace […] as they sip their lager – but sip they do. You don't catch much of the conversation, though; a Garrulous Drunk waves his way through the tables to sit at your ear and talk."
  13. ↑ Apply a bottle of F.F. Gebrandt's Verdant Stimulator (4 FATE), Fallen London "Rare, immensely expensive and technically illegal, this stuff would make a boulder bloom."
  14. ↑ Converse on the Correspondence, Fallen London "The flameproof paper was originally born out of necessity. I wonder if I should have put it on the market – it only gives people even more unwise ideas."
  15. ↑ Descend (The Abyssal Depths), Fallen London "'What is that caulk? "F.F. Gebrandt's Superior Postal Adhesive […] Illegal without a licence, obviously.""
  16. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt's Patent Illuminating Cap, Fallen London "A miner's cap fitted with a highly miniaturized glim-lamp. Wearing it in a dark place turns the world blue, cyan, and peligin."
  17. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt's Patent Neathoscope, Containing and Displaying All Seven Colours of Exotic Light, Fallen London "A dazzling contraption for safely viewing and displaying those colours that are unique to the Neath. Delightful at parties. WARNING: Do not gaze onto the device for longer than seventy-three seconds."
  18. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt's Cylindrical Ph%C3%A9nakistiscope, Fallen London "Set it spinning and watch through the slits – tigers leap; urchins brawl; steamers zail. Insert a candle and view it in a darkened room and the black-on-white silhouettes reveal hidden details. Comes with a complement of seven unique picture strips."
  19. ↑ The Charming of F.F. Gebrandt, Fallen London "F.F. Gebrandt is giving a rare public lecture at the Department of Infernal Rarefactions. Perhaps you should attend and meet her."
  20. ↑ Would you care to give a guest lecture?, Fallen London "The students are keen. The staff are coolly intrigued by your theories. F.F. Gebrandt may be in the audience."
  21. ↑ Help Mrs Gebrandt answer her correspondence, Fallen London "F.F. Gebrandt receives many requests for medical information - and also for help with less scientific problems. It's a busy time of year. A number of ghost-writers have been drafted in to help."
  22. ↑ Write to F.F. Gebrandt 2, Fallen London "In veiled terms. Very veiled terms. She answers advice columns for the papers, and whatever she says in reply to you must be suited to any readership."
  23. ↑ Be sympathetic, Fallen London "You draft a letter suggesting that the young lady simply ask her fiancé […] 'That will never do,' says Mrs Gebrandt. 'If people start behaving like that, I shall never sell any […] There's no arguing against this agenda."
  24. ↑ Be cruel to be kind 1, Fallen London "Your reply is full of dire warnings about this kind of scandalous conduct – and hints that the writer should stock up on F.F. Gebrandt's sal volatile forthwith, as a countermeasure against the fainting fits she is so evidently prone to."
  25. ↑ Write to F.F. Gebrandt, Fallen London "Mrs Gebrandt - or one of her ghost-writers - replies to your letter in a very timely fashion. And in amongst the veiled barbs and thinly disguised advertisments for tonics and tinctures nestle a few nuggets of genuine wisdom."
  26. ↑ Make a substantial donation to F.F. Gebrandt's church, Fallen London "It's more like a university common room than a vicarage. But Mrs Gebrandt is pleased at your generosity. Would you like to assist with a small experiment?"
  27. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt and You, Fallen London "You call upon Mrs F.F. Gebrandt at her acrid-smelling laboratory on the outskirts of the city."
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Tell her everything, Fallen London "F.F. Gebrandt […] confides that she parted ways with Mr Wines […]. She also offers a secret: anything Mr Wines sells as 'absinthe' is likely no such thing. It is its code for products that are harmful to their drinkers."
  29. ↑ Rely on her knowledge of chemistry, Fallen London "F.F. Gebrandt is […] knowledgeable and helpful on chemical matters. Though on the subject of Mr Spices' tears she is almost too knowledgeable, making a few leaps of logic that prove to be correct, but seem unsupported by the evidence before you."
  30. ↑ Do the bidding of Mr Wines, Fallen London ""Mr Wines, the Master of the Bazaar who deals in drinks and entertainment, has asked after the health and happiness of Mrs Gebrandt. However, it also wants her to share her scientific advances with the Masters.""
  31. ↑ Do the bidding of Mr Wines, Fallen London "You and F.F. Gebrandt are getting along famously until the Masters are mentioned. She has no kind words for them, […] describes them in terms uncommonly heard from a lady. You won't advance Mr Wines' cause today, but you could always call again later."
  32. ↑ Reach into a secret memory of F.F. Gebrandt, Fallen London "[…]'In a letter to 'Cuddy', F.F. responds: '[…] you are right about the ineffectiveness of my "Patented Love Potion". Have you not considered that this might be deliberate? […] if you're calling me an "old fraud", you better be calling me "old" to my face.'"
  33. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt's Hall of Recent History (Coilheart Games), Fallen London "Gebrandt's temporary sale […] has returned[…] the sign out front declares the venture 'IN COLLABORATION WITH THE RESPLENDENT COURT OF THE WAKEFUL EYE'. A Striped Overseer[…] watches over the takings […] Unsold trinkets and gewgaws from summers past fill the shelves. […]"
  34. ↑ Wander the sideshows (Intellect), Fallen London "F.F. Gebrandt is a judge in the 'contest alchemical', which takes place upon a gazebo-shaped patch of singed grass. It appears that a tobacconist from Rosegate is responsible [...]. Gebrandt – waving away smoke – appraises him from a safe distance."
  35. ↑ Speak to F.F. Gebrandt (Fruits of the Zee), Fallen London "I'm so glad you asked! An inquisitive mind is the trait I admire most in a person." [...] "My presence here serves a twofold purpose – to raise awareness for the Prelapsarian Exhibition, and to perform valuable toxicological research. [...]"
  36. ↑ Question the wisdom of the line of inquiry, Fallen London "What is sacred? Knowledge is sacred. There is nothing so holy as using the knowledge gained from […] inquiry to improve society's lot. […] this water – if the effects are replicable, we might make vital medicines delicious, or energise the melancholic."
  37. ↑ Discover her plans for London (F.F. Gebrandt), Fallen London
  38. ↑ Get her opinion on your research, Fallen London "F.F. Gebrandt is keenly interested in palaeontology, and is not afraid to bring her many hypotheses to bear on your present study."
  39. ↑ Learn more about F.F. Gebrandt's platform, Fallen London "London is on the cusp of a breakthrough, and, as Mayor, I can ensure that it happens. [...] I cannot currently reveal it – I'm in the process of applying for a patent. But I'm aware of a recent enthusiasm in London for palaeontology. I couldn't miss the possibilities of combining my discovery with those of the palaeontologists."
  40. ↑ Discover her plans for London (F.F. Gebrandt), Fallen London "I'm going to nurture the flame of London's imagination. Provide palaeontological education – to start with, a museum to learn from and contribute to. Encourage explorations, help Londoners discover things that have never been seen before. As they grow addicted to the joy of discovery, London shall learn, and rise up on its newfound knowledge."
  41. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt (Election Candidate), Fallen London ""We will start with a museum, but that's only the beginning. I am in the process of developing a new formula." She has been inspired by the new passion for palaeontology and believes that she will, eventually, be able to supplement skeletons with living muscles. "It will revolutionise industry! Relieve the working classes!" [...] living extinct beasts will 'surely be the next step'."
  42. ↑ Learn more about F.F. Gebrandt's platform, Fallen London "Will she really bring dinosaurs to London? Wouldn't that be hugely dangerous? "That's getting a little ahead. [...] I do promise that I'd enable advances in the palaeontological field. And I'll raise the influence of scientists in society. At the expense of traditionalists, some of whom hold far too much sway over all of us.""
  43. ↑ Choose F.F. Gebrandt as your candidate, Fallen London "Your Aunt is managing F.F. Gebrandt's campaign. She marshals a squad of spinsters […] Even constables quail before them, letting them stick posters up in entirely illegal places. […] Your Aunt herself pins the rosette to your collar […]"
  44. ↑ Ask F.F. Gebrandt if the Mayorship wouldn’t be a conflict of interest, Fallen London "That is, I'm afraid, one of the failures of democracy. To have the wherewithal to work for the good of the people rather than your pocket, you must already be rich. To have the influence to be able to win, you must already possess a degree of power."
  45. ↑ Ask F.F. Gebrandt if the Mayorship wouldn't be a conflict of interest, Fallen London ""I can't deny that I could use it to advance my personal work. Indeed, my belief in what would benefit the town is certainly influenced by my own interests. But I think you'll find the other candidates haven't the introspection even to realise this. Which means that they cannot resist their biases. I can, and will.""
  46. ↑ Show F. F. Gebrandt around your Stall, Fallen London "She is making a campaign visit to the Bone Market, assuring seller and buyer alike that she will bring the study of Palaeontology to new heights. There is much talk of the Museum."
  47. ↑ An Augmented Electrostatic Machine, Fallen London "[…] The bolts of lightning […] should be harmless, but an earlier visitor returned from the boatman with their hair entirely on end. […] It takes five porters to carry […] "This will be a damn sight easier when she comes through on those prehistoric lifters," […]"
  48. ↑ Election 1898: Statistics, Failbetter Games "The Viscountess won with 42% of the vote, over F.F. Gebrandt’s respectable 32% and the Rubbery Entrepreneur’s 25%."
  49. ↑ Take Tea with F.F. Gebrandt, Fallen London "I meant everything I said during the Mayoral campaign, you know." […] You wonder aloud if she has any regrets. "Regrets? I failed, I suppose. I don't really think of it in those terms. Maybe London failed me. Maybe we failed each other."
  50. ↑ Have a word with F.F. Gebrandt (The Waswood), Fallen London "[…] you see […] London […] awash with the effluvia of enterprise, its boutiques, chemists and pharmacies flooded with new and ever more daring products. […] she abolishes the position as her final act, to ensure she is not disturbed from her laboratory again."
  51. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt's Prelapsarian Exhibition, Failbetter Games
  52. ↑ F.F. Gebrandt's Prelapsarian Exhibition, Failbetter Games "F.F. Gebrandt CORDIALLY INVITES All Londoners to participate in the Raising of a New Museum of Prelapsarian History & accompanying Exhibition, to put on Display Curiosities Historical, Palaeontological, & Philosophical."
  53. ↑ Watch as Gebrandt explains her machine, Fallen London "The stone body of the Salt Lions accumulates time like a mortal body accumulates heavy metals. It is a toxicological phenomenon. [...] We are able to separate out the relevant principles through dialysis, making certain segments of the past available to us."
  54. ↑ Watch, yet more furtively, Fallen London "The Consort – whether that is the real man or a shadow conjured up from the fog – has cornered himself against the walls in fear. He pleads with the Empress in ragged German, and she pleads back with him – soothing and begging."
  55. ↑ Watch, yet more furtively, Fallen London ""I am turning the machine off," yells Gebrandt – for the first time you notice the dull hum that has filled the room, making it hard to hear her speak. For the first time, the Empress acknowledges her with a hiss: "We forbid it!""
  56. ↑ A Careful Stroll Around the Neighbourhood, Fallen London
  57. ↑ Hear her call to action, Fallen London "[…] one must make the obvious connection to the emergence of prelapsarian architecture around London." […] "To fight this new menace, we must understand it. […] I have some ideas. But most of the knowledge we need is out there – I need your help finding it.""
  58. ↑ Cover your nose, Fallen London "The scent is heady – borne aloft by ethanol. [...] "I've made enough to clear out the immediate vicinity of the museum. But with some help, I could scale up to industrial quantities. Enough to manage all of London.""
  59. ↑ Stay and watch what happens, Fallen London "Gebrandt is holding a large steel mallet. She counts a few seconds [...] When no more ushabtiu materialize, she swings the hammer. The mirror [...] shatters into a million little pieces. A wave of catharsis washes over the [...] members of the investigation."
  60. ↑ Listen for F.F.'s answer, Fallen London "It is regrettable that the museum's opening has been tarnished in this manner, but the events in question had very little to do with the Exhibition itself, being largely perpetuated by" – she pulls herself back from the brink of treason – "third parties, and solved by science and experimentation. The museum is a successful monument to curiosity and knowledge, and one which I stand behind wholeheartedly."
  61. ↑ Ask F.F. to share a confidence (The Waswood), Fallen London
  62. ↑ Ask F.F. to share a confidence (The Waswood), Fallen London "A gangling, mustachioed gentleman canters down [...] He gives F.F.'s shoulder a fond pat as he passes. Her husband? "Well. [...] That is what we say. [...] It has been a useful convenience. Our 'marriage' meant I could pursue my studies unharassed, and removed from him at least one cause of parental disapproval. [...] He is my closest friend, and the person I trust the most. That's better than most marriages."
  63. ↑ Seduce her!, Fallen London "[…] The afternoon turns to evening […] in a haze of pleasure […]. You even learn what F.F. stands for. […] Mrs Gebrandt confides that she has grown tired of the Masters' attention. She is thinking of cutting them a little more of her business […]"
  64. ↑ Stay up all night talking science with F.F. Gebrandt, Fallen London "...there was someone once, you know. Splendid fellow. Amazing moustache. He went off and joined the cavalry. Heard he got married too. So did I, as it happened. Wonder where he is now."
  65. ↑ Employ the Reflection of F.F. Gebrandt, Fallen London "F.F. Gebrandt – You can't for the life of you tell how her reflection is unlike herself; it is uncanny – vibrates with impatience. She doesn't like Parabola one bit."
Retrieved from "https://thefifthcity.wiki/w/index.php?title=F.F._Gebrandt&oldid=18785"