A quill pen and notebook belonging to Edgar Allan Poe this pair represents a bifurcated artifact housed at Warehouse 13. When together, their effective power is unknown. When separated, readers of the notebook will discover that the words become literally embedded into their skin, while the pen can be used as an indirect weapon.
Background[]
Edgar Allan Poe was an American writer, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story, and is considered by some to be the inventor of the detective-fiction genre. He is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. He was the first well-known American writer to try to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in a financially difficult life and career.
Usage[]
At some point after his death, Poe's quill pen and a notebook that belonged to him came into the possession of a university. Together, the quill pen and notebook introduce the concept of a bifurcated object, or multi-part artifact. Poe's quill pen became unexpectedly active as an artifact, after long dormancy, when it was separated from its notebook counterpart. The pen somehow influenced a student to steal it from the university where it was being kept so that it could be reunited with the notebook. Without the pen, the notebook was attracted to Myka's father because of his love for the written word, apparently using him as a substitute for the pen. Before it was recovered, the notebook appeared to become less active when within hearing range of good stories, such as when Myka read her father's book, which appeared to cause it to calm down enough to release Warren from its grip.
The two halves of the artifact also seem to have a special bond with one another. When they found their potential substitutes, they began to whisper excitedly and urgently to one another, while also sending visions to each other through their chosen surrogates to help them relocated their lost partners. The two halves are also drawn to people who have a love of the written word, possibly due to having been in the possession of such a prolific and emotionally powerful writer. They now appear to thrive with a creative person when separated, which would also explain why the notebook was calmed by hearing Myka reading her father's book. Also it should be noted when the notebook called to the pen to calm it, as if sensing its partner was safe and knowing that Pete and Claudia were a better option to reunite it with its partner.
When they finally were reunited, Artie warned Pete to be careful when putting the two of them together, considering how long they had been apart and how desperately they wanted to reunite. He mentioned that the pen would probably "flip out" with excitement now that it was close to being back with its partner. After placing the two carefully back together, nothing happened immediately, which worried Myka, but Artie guessed that after being separated for so long the artifacts where just getting reacquainted. After they where done reconnecting, the two objects let out a burst of black mist (probably ink) and reabsorbed the energies they had temporarily placed in their chosen surrogates.
It should be noted that while each object's behavior appeared menacing, it is likely that they were only attempting to reunite with each other, and simply acted up because they separated. It is possible that as long as they are kept together they will remain inactive and, in theory, could be stored in the main Warehouse without much trouble.
How it Works[]
When Poe's quill pen is separated from its companion notebook, readers of the notebook will find that words from the book literally move and crawl across their skin and seemingly cause a momentary lapse in sanity. The pen itself appears to give its wielder the ability to attack or affect people, in ways similar to attacks in Poe's stories, when they write words such as "wall," "fire," or "mine" on a piece of paper. Only when reunited do the pen and notebook become less active, though it may be possible to temporarily deactivate the notebook by telling a well-written story within close proximity. Each object appears to send visions to their current keepers in order to be reunited, with the visions becoming more intense the longer the two are separated and active.
When thrown into neutralizer separately, the two pieces remain active and the submerged artifact produces a bizarre effect on the neutralizer. For example when the notebook was placed in neutralizer, it turned the substance in it into what was probably ink. Artie explained that this was the artifact providing a clue as to what its missing piece was. Also, the notebook seems to have an invisible inscription written on its front and spine, one that appeared briefly when Pete grabbed it with the neutralizer gloves and threw it across the room. The same inscription appeared when the artifact was reunited with its counterpart.
MacPherson claimed that by using the artifact Myka's father was given a glimpse in to Edgar Allen Poe's mind and that he would "thank him for it" after. This seems to suggest the pen and notebook absorbed or were imprinted with their original owner's creative spirit after being with him for so many years. It would explain why the Notebook seemed to voice its distaste through Myka's father, telling the student to stop when the boy who had the pen used it to get rid of people he didn't like and force a girl to like him. Also the notebook probably calmed when listening to Myka read her father's book because of the passion and emotion in the story she read; the two objects were probably used to being exposed to this kind of passion when their master was still alive.