Ashnabis session 70
Summary
Session
Session date: March 27, 2022
Fair Cycle date:
Introduction
<AshnabisNarrator> I laid a mark, a track, a trace
<AshnabisNarrator> In sodden clay, by river's edge
<AshnabisNarrator> Upon the rooty bank, at dusk
<AshnabisNarrator> A sign, an ancient character
<AshnabisNarrator> Akin to those my grandma carved
<AshnabisNarrator> Atop the lintel and the hearth
<AshnabisNarrator> And on her husband's sepulchre.
<AshnabisNarrator> Few now can read the elder glyphs
<AshnabisNarrator> An alphabet of lowly folk
<AshnabisNarrator> Who danced the tide and sang the wind
<AshnabisNarrator> Now write their days on cobblestones
<AshnabisNarrator> In an unfitting parchment-hand.
<AshnabisNarrator> I laid a trace, a track, a mark
<AshnabisNarrator> A monument in river clay
<AshnabisNarrator> That soon enough will wash away
<AshnabisNarrator> I scratch it not for living eyes
<AshnabisNarrator> But grandmothers and cypress-roots
<AshnabisNarrator> And for an hour, the river sees
<AshnabisNarrator> That still it is my home.
<AshnabisNarrator> Home. This place, Kaskind, the Sestapor, Ashnabis, all of it, it is, awkwardly, for all its unwelcome flaws, still, now, home. The ineffable crimson-gold of whatever river leads to and from Fenead Asath gives way to the more familiar, unmistakeable scent of the slow-moving Kaskos in summer. You are back.
<AshnabisNarrator> The Maiden's Voice hardly knows what to say. Bakkus and Ragamen, the brothers, look at you as if to ask whether there is any point in arguing further. There really isn't. You're back, and they're here with you, and so too is Sashni, still as ever, but it is almost as if you can see the emotion in her long-dead eyes.
<AshnabisNarrator> There will surely be time for recriminations later, but at the moment, you feel nothing more than deep exhaustion and the desire to see a friendly smile at home.
Daifan welcomes a returning Balinteze
<AshnabisGM> Daifan, you have been back for a few days and things are settling back into something like a normal routine. You take the time to thank Ughiva for her help. Little Shira (no longer quite a baby) seems to grow a bit bigger each day. You spend your free time with your partners and your family.
<AshnabisGM> As soon as you're able to, you perform a Sending to Balinteze to let them know you're safe and that they don't need to worry, and wishing them well.
<NPC3> You receive a reply back, of course: "Thanks for letting me know, I'm glad to hear from you. I'm fine but it's weird being back here. Can't get used to being myself."
<AshnabisGM> It's evening and you are enjoying a few moments of peace and quiet on the steps of your home, watching the birds overhead seeking out shelter for the night as the sun begins to set.
<AshnabisGM> You look down and realize that someone is walking towards you, silhouetted against the purple and red of the sky - a tall, slender figure you'd recognize anywhere.
* Daifan blinks in surprise
<Balinteze> Hi, Smiles.
* Balinteze is wearing a long green brocade coat, with their hands shoved into the pockets and a bag over their shoulder, and has their once-long hair cut short in what is probably a fashionable court style.
<Daifan> Pinkberry?
* Daifan stands and will go and embrace them
<Daifan> What?
* Balinteze looks like they aren't quite sure if they should try to hug you, but once you make the first gesture, they embrace you back.
<Balinteze> I know you said you were okay, but I kept thinking about your message.
<Balinteze> About how scared I was when I heard you were missing, and then how relieved I was when I heard your voice again.
<Daifan> had to come check on me?
<Balinteze> I thought... well, I thought, what am I doing here, when the person who means the most to me in this world or any other is a thousand miles away?
<Balinteze> Mostly what I thought was, I'm an idiot.
<Balinteze> I'd understand if you asked me to leave again, but I just needed to see you in person, to really know you're okay.
<Daifan> I wouldn't ask you that. You have to know your own heart. And you still live in mine.
* Daifan pulls back a bit to look at them
<Balinteze> Okay, because I brought my things. At least a few :)
<Daifan> I am okay.
* Balinteze nods, putting a hand to your cheek to look at you.
<Daifan> Visiting thing?
<Balinteze> I don't know.
* Daifan nods
<Balinteze> I don't think so.
<Daifan> We can figure it out
<Balinteze> I tried fitting back into my life there and it didn't feel like mine anymore.
* Daifan nods
<Daifan> I can't imagine going back to Daligash
<Balinteze> It felt like pretending to be someone else. And I can do that - I've done it plenty.
<Daifan> and my life there was....mostly.... less dramatic
<Balinteze> But maybe I don't want to anymore. Or at least... not without having something that's true behind it.
* Daifan nods
* Daifan squeezes their hands
<Balinteze> I know you have your life here, and I can't just barge into it.
<Daifan> It's not the same without you in it
<Daifan> I missed you :<
<Balinteze> I missed you too.
<Daifan> I want you to stay, and figure out what that means
* Balinteze nods
<Daifan> I'm a little scared of being the only thing you're here for, though
<Daifan> I want you to be happy
<Balinteze> Well... I'm a little scared of whether I will get bored, but I think there's a lot to do here, for both of us.
<Balinteze> I don't mean bored with you!
* Balinteze adds quickly
<Balinteze> But I haven't been here without a job before. I'd have to figure out something new.
<Daifan> I'm sure I can help - I know lots of people ^-^
<Balinteze> Have you ever thought about taking over this place? ;)
* Balinteze says, half-teasing.
<Daifan> well someone has to, don't they? ;)
<Balinteze> I think you've got connections with most people here, or they know you as someone who helps people.
<Balinteze> If that was something you wanted to do, I'd be happy to help you
<Daifan> hmmm.
* Daifan looks out into the community
<Daifan> I do think... we can do better for each other
* Balinteze nods
<Daifan> you can help me with that, I guess - and we'll see where it goes :3
<Balinteze> I'd rather work towards something that matters to us, than for someone who will never say my name in public.
* Daifan nods
<Balinteze> So if I can help you, then that's worthwhile.
<Daifan> People keep having all this confidence in me :3
<Daifan> It's going to go to my head
* Balinteze smiles at that
<Balinteze> I'm sure there are plenty of people who'll keep you humble.
<Daifan> I hope you can be one of them... sometimes, anyway
<Balinteze> If you want :)
<Daifan> Did you want to come in? Spider and Sheepstealer *may* have some words for you but I won't let them be too mean.
<Balinteze> I'd like to. They can yell at me if they want.
<Daifan> okay.
* Daifan will take their hand and bring them in the little house :3
Daifan and Junan make plans
* Daifan will make sure to make some time to come see Junan, in their busy readjusting to being home schedule ;)
* Junan appears to be packing when Daifan arrives
<Junan> (or at least assembling his possessions)
<Junan> Oh hi... not leaving, just decided to relocate
<Daifan> relocate where?
<Junan> I havent found a place yet, but I figured if I get my stuff together, it would help keep me moving towards it.
<Junan> find a house or something... I cant keep renting a room for the rest of my time here
<Junan> and it will give me some better privacy
<Daifan> privacy is good...
<Junan> I seem to get into all sorts of shady stuff
<Daifan> Mmhmm...
<Daifan> are you happy with thaat?
<Junan> keeps life interesting
<Daifan> well, that's important too
<Junan> when I write the ballad of my life... I plan for it to be epic
* Junan smiles
* Daifan also
<Daifan> maybe if you live epically enough, someone else will wrte it for you ;)
* Junan chuckles
<Junan> wouldnt that be something
<Junan> but there would be several versions... the public one
<Junan> and then the magical secret one
<Daifan> the tell-all version?
<Daifan> secret relationships, travels to other worlds?
<Junan> you always get it
<Daifan> you know I do ;)
<Junan> and how fairs yourself, back from one such otherworldly escapade?
<Daifan> I'm doing okay, but it is a lot to think about
<Daifan> Balinteze came back.... they missed me too much.
<Junan> Well some risks are worth taking.
<Daifan> I think so.
<Daifan> One of the things that being stuck... over there... showed me, was hoa content I am in my life, and how lucky, for all the people in it
<Junan> It scared me quite a bit.
<Junan> I thought I had time for everything, no rush to find myself, mend relationships, pick a path.
* Daifan nods
<Junan> So I get what you are saying
<Daifan> are those things you want to do now?
<Junan> I'm gonna work on it.
<Junan> I make no promises of success
<Daifan> I'll help you how I can. If you want that.
<Junan> of course. The best way to do any of those things is with people you care about.
* Daifan smiles again.
<Daifan> I know just what you mean.
<Daifan> so then - shall we drink to the future?
<Junan> the future is always better with wine, am I right?
* Junan finds skins and cups
<Daifan> absolutely ^_^
<Junan> and you know that goes both ways right? anything I can help you with, I will be there.
<Daifan> I do - and I will hold you to that.
<Daifan> I want to start... trying to make my commuity strnger. I don't knwo what all that will look like yet, but it might be helpful to have a friendly voice, that others will listen to, on the outside
<Daifan> or at least tell me who we need to curse ;)
* Junan laughs
<Junan> oh the evil I could do with such power!
* Daifan chuckles
<Daifan> well, you'll have someone to try and keep you in check ;)
<Junan> my seductive wiles will overcome their resistance.
* Junan winks
<Junan> when a vision of a plan does form, let me know so I can be of aid.
<Junan> I can play soft music to ease your soul in the meantime
<Daifan> I would like that very much :3
* Junan lets Daifan repose in comfort while stringing smooth notes
Veznara helps Ziftu receive baby Emnai
<AshnabisGM> Veznara, you have been helping Ziftu and Sumurt with preparations for a new arrival - the baby they have been charged with adopting will soon be here.
* Balinteze is now known as Ziftu
* Ziftu is nervous about receiving the child, but she has made all the necessary arrangements for having a baby in the house (or had her staff make them, mostly).
<AshnabisGM> When the day arrives, finally, the child is delivered by one of the Hand - the unusual situation is smoothed over by the presence of the priestess to help.
<AshnabisGM> A girl baby of a bit more than half a year's age, to all appearances healthy and growing strong, but with a strange quiet nature and dark eyes that seem wiser than her years, is brought to the estate.
* Ziftu and Sumurt accept the child with thanks.
<Ziftu> Please also convey my gratitude to those who raised her thus far, along with this token.
* Ziftu offers a small bag with (presumably) some coins.
<Ziftu> Veznara, what do you think I should name her?
* Ziftu asks, holding the baby a bit awkwardly.
<Veznara> Did you have anything in mind, my lady?
<Ziftu> Well... I'm sure it would be considered quite appropriate to name her after my late grandmother. But...
<Ziftu> I'm not sure. If that's what would be best.
* Ziftu looks uncertain
<Veznara> I suppose it would be...but you seem to have reservations.
<Veznara> Your revered grandmother was quite a unique individual.
<Ziftu> Well, I would like the child to feel part of the family, so a family name seems right, but ...
<Ziftu> I hope I'll have children of my own someday, but she will always be my first child, and so she has a special place in my heart.
<Veznara> Well... I'm sure there are other family names you could choose from. What was the name of your grandmother's mother?
<Ziftu> Emnai.
<Veznara> How does that feel as a name for her?
<Ziftu> I think it's good. It's a little like my grandmother's name, but not too close.
<Veznara> It still honours her, I think.
* Veznara looks at the baby and smiles gently
<Veznara> How do *you* feel about it, my little princess?
* Emnai looks at you with a little smile.
<Ziftu> I'm sure I'll need your help - I understand children are a lot of work.
<Ziftu> You know, while you were away, your... friend... Voice Bitsaar came to see where you were. I spoke with him for a little bit, before he left.
<Veznara> Oh?
<Ziftu> He does care a great deal for you. Even I can tell that, although I don't know him at all well. He was concerned when you hadn't come back for a few days.
<Veznara> Oh.
* Veznara smiles and she blushes
<Veznara> I'm sorry about that... I didn't mean to leave without warning, but...
<Veznara> Well, anyway. I confess, I care about him as well.
<Ziftu> Well, I don't know how things work with priests, really, but you know you have my confidence.
<Veznara> Thank you, Ziftu. I've... sort of been figuring it out myself.
<Ziftu> You're like a big sister for me :)
* Veznara smiles back
<Veznara> I feel the same way.
<Veznara> It's funny... when I first came here, it seemed like a punishment.
<Veznara> But now... I've found honor, and happiness, and a family.
<Veznara> I didn't expect to have that here. But I'm so happy that I do.
<Ziftu> Well, it can't really be a punishment anymore, then. Not if we get to make our own choices and be with the ones we care about.
<Ziftu> You'll always have a place here.
* Veznara smiles and starts to get teary
<Veznara> Oh, my sister. Thank you.
<Veznara> And this one here... a new member of our family to love.
<Ziftu> Yes, let's go inside :) It's probably time for the baby to eat, or nap, or .. whatever it is babies do.
<Veznara> Yes. Our little Princess Emnai. We'll have to do a lot for you! We'll do our best to make sure you grow up strong.. but happy. And kind. Loved... and *loving*.
* Veznara looks at the baby again
* Emnai hiccups.
<Veznara> Oh... I think she needs to be burped? Maybe?
<Veznara> Don't worry, little one. We'll take good care of you.
* Veznara smiles, and gently strokes the baby's cheek.
* Ziftu holds the baby up to rest against her shoulder, whereupon baby Emnai drools down the back of her dress.
<Veznara> Oh! Oh dear.
<Veznara> Well, no matter. Let's go inside and take care of both of you.
<Ziftu> Ew... well. Let's definitely go inside so I can find a cloth for her... and change my clothes.
<Veznara> I'm afraid there may be a lot more messes like that in our near future.
<Veznara> But It doesn't matter. It'll be worth it.
* Veznara escorts them both in and helps with the cleanup.
Katenzhi speaks with Atsa about family and the future
<AshnabisGM> Katenzhi, you are relieved to be home and see your family again, much as they are relieved to have you and Bivizmi back.
<AshnabisGM> Bivizmi has been sleeping better the past few nights, giving you hope that perhaps the visions and nightmares that have troubled her might be improving, although it's still too early to tell for sure.
<AshnabisGM> One day you notice that Atsa's perfume shop, which had been closed for a time, has reopened, and seems to be doing a brisk business.
* Katenzhi will poke her head into the shop.
* Atsa smiles to see you and once she's done helping the customer in front of her, will welcome you in.
<Atsa> How are you doing?
<Katenzhi> I'm... good. For once. Things seem back to normal. Or whatever passes for normal around here.
<Katenzhi> How are you? Are your children ok?
<Atsa> I'm well, and the children are well, thank you.
<Atsa> I'm glad that my husband returned safely, although I don't know if I can forgive him for the choices he made - for putting them above his wife and children.
<Atsa> But we'll be all right. I'll manage.
<Katenzhi> I'm sorry that you had to go through that.
<Katenzhi> I wanted to thank you. For everything.
* Atsa nods
<Katenzhi> You risked your life for us.
<Katenzhi> I want you to know that If there's anything I can do...
<Atsa> Thank you as well. I think you and your friends have ... well, it's early to tell, but I think you had some effect on them.
<Katenzhi> I hope so.
* Atsa waits until a customer who was browsing leaves the store and then says more quietly
<Atsa> I understand that things are changing within the village. Some have realized that perhaps the way that Sashni was leading them was not in their best interests.
<Katenzhi> Really?
<Atsa> Not everyone. But perhaps enough. They are coming to see that they have been too caught up in the evils of the past to see that what matters is how things are now, and have begun looking to the future.
<Katenzhi> I guess people actually can change sometimes.
<Atsa> I think they feel they have been misguided - that they have pushed away what they should have embraced and lost things that should not have been forgotten.
* Katenzhi nods.
<Atsa> Several spoke of your friend - Hand Veznara, is that right? - of her words resonating with them, reminding them that they used to have a different role, one that had faded over many generations but not been forgotten.
* Katenzhi smiles at that.
<Atsa> Some might be like me - they might leave and not look back. But for others, even if they stay in that group, they may see ... some different paths before them.
<Katenzhi> I hope they find a les... violent... role.
* Atsa nods
<Atsa> Sashni is a saint, but she is also a child, who suffered through something no child should ever have to face, and who died in that state of pain and anger. I have sympathy for her, in a way - I have children, and I wouldn't want them to suffer as she has - but that doesn't mean I think we should be following her guidance on how to live our lives.
<Atsa> There is no better, safer, more pure place to flee to. There's only this, here, now. We should build on the past and learn from it, but not be bound by it. At least, that's my wish.
<Katenzhi> I don't think I can ever forgive her for Bivizmi. But you're right. We need to move forward. We can't let the past define us.
<Katenzhi> I have a family now. One that I chose. I just want them to be safe. I know you can relate.
<Atsa> Yes. That's what I want as well. For a safe and happy future for my children. And I don't think we would ever have had that if we'd stayed there. This world offers so much to them... I couldn't keep them cut off from seeing that.
<Atsa> I just hope that the rest of them will see that too, with time.
<Katenzhi> I hope so too. They have a chance now. That's about as much as anyone can hope for. Maybe they'll find a better family.
<Atsa> I don't fully understand what happened in that place, but thank you for everything. I know you were instrumental in helping them survive and get back here. I'll always be grateful for that.
* Katenzhi nods.
<Katenzhi> Can I ask you something?
<Atsa> Certainly.
<Katenzhi> What's it like being a parent?
* Atsa smiles at that.
<Atsa> It's like having a part of your heart walking around outside in the world. It's amazing and it's terrifying, because you can see what good and what bad might befall them, and you can only do your best to try and help them on that path - and you know one day you won't be there to help them anymore.
* Katenzhi nods.
<Atsa> At some point you have to hope you did well enough and let them go.
<Katenzhi> And just hope they make the right choices...
<Katenzhi> Thanks.
* Atsa nods
<Atsa> Thank you. I hope we'll see each other again soon.
* Katenzhi smiles.
<Katenzhi> I'm sure we will. This is my home now.
Katenzhi and Jimba talk about their experience
* Jimba will go visit Kat at home.
<Katenzhi> Jimba!
* Jimba smiles.
<Jimba> Hey Kat. How's everyone here? Bivizmi doing all right?
<Katenzhi> Good at the moment. She's been sleeping better. She went into town for supplies and Gefraz took Divrola and the sprout down to the park for the afternoon. I was just painting.
* Katenzhi gestures at the stained apron she has over her Dashi
<Katenzhi> How've you been since we got back?
* Jimba considers.
<Jimba> I'm...not sure.
<Jimba> It was a pretty singular experience.
* Katenzhi takes off the apron and sits down on a nearby couch.
<Katenzhi> Yeah.
<Katenzhi> It was... something.
* Jimba nods, and will take a seat as well.
<Katenzhi> A whole other world.
<Katenzhi> Are you ok?
<Jimba> Hmm? Yeah, I'm fine. I just...I don't know. It's got me thinking.
<Jimba> They went to so much trouble to try to make a place of their own.
* Jimba sighs.
<Katenzhi> Isn't that what we all want, in the end? A place of our own?
<Jimba> Yeah.
<Jimba> I'm just so tired of everyone thinking that for a place to be their own, it can't be anyone else's, either.
<Jimba> If that makes sense.
* Katenzhi nods.
<Katenzhi> Yeah. It does.
<Jimba> How many of the problems we've had to deal with could have been solved if people just talked to one another? Were willing to share a little, instead of trying to take everything?
* Jimba sighs again and shakes his head.
<Katenzhi> Some people are like that. They just want everything for themselves. And maybe they won't ever change. But some people can. And those are the ones that make the difference.
* Jimba nods.
<Katenzhi> As long as you don't give up on them.
<Katenzhi> And I know you. You don't give up.
* Jimba smiles at that.
<Jimba> And maybe I can make a place for myself, like you have.
<Jimba> Maybe a place for all of us.
* Katenzhi smiles
<Katenzhi> If anyone can, you can.
<Katenzhi> And you know that you'll always have a place here, right? We'll always be family.
<Jimba> Well, my faith lies more in others, but I think I can at least get them talking.
* Jimba nods.
<Jimba> I know.
<Katenzhi> You know... I never thought this is where life would take me.
* Katenzhi looks around
<Jimba> Oh?
<Katenzhi> Honestly... I never really thought it was even a possibility.
<Jimba> Which part?
<Katenzhi> Being married... settling down... living in one place.
<Katenzhi> It's weird.
<Katenzhi> Honestly... I think a part of me never expected to live this long.
<Jimba> That's...concerning.
<Jimba> Hopefully now you plan to live longer?
* Katenzhi laughs.
<Katenzhi> Sorry, I'm not trying to worry you. I just mean the way I was living before all this. I've changed, I think. I hope.
<Katenzhi> People can change.
<Katenzhi> And I wouldn't be here without you.
<Jimba> Likewise.
* Jimba will lean over to give Kat a hug.
* Katenzhi smiles and returns the hug.
<Jimba> I mean, I *planned* to live, but I feel like I've come closer to dying than any of us. ;)
<Katenzhi> Well, yeah, you do tend to get the shit kicked out of you more than can possibly be healthy.
* Jimba laughs.
* Katenzhi ruffles Jimba's hair.
<Katenzhi> So what now?
<Katenzhi> What's your next move?
<Jimba> Same as it always is. Talk to some folks.
* Katenzhi nods.
<Katenzhi> Talking is good. Better than the alternative.
* Jimba nods.
<Jimba> For now, how about a drink?
<Katenzhi> I've got a bottle of port from Kaskind that I've been saving. If coming back from another world isn't a special occassion, I don't know what is.
* Jimba smiles.
<Jimba> To new worlds, then.
<Katenzhi> I'll drink to that.
<AshnabisNarrator> Junan, the General is very interested in what you have to report on your trip to Fenead Asath. But the general is not interested in metaphysics or cosmology. In truth, her concern is how it will shape her response to the Maiden's Voice cult, which obviously is more of a problem than she anticipated.
<AshnabisNarrator> But for now, she must think about that response. That evening, though, you return from the Fort find an note from the Senator slipped under your door, sealed with his own seal. It reads, "Hear you have returned from your unexpected adventure. It's been too long, my friend. Come over for dinner."
* Junan will gladly accept the invitation for meal and conversation
<AshnabisNarrator> You head over to Ghendalt's manor house and are quickly escorted by the staff into his parlor.
* Ghendalt comes into the room a few minutes later.
* Ghendalt is dressed in a green-grey silk dashi clasped together at the breast with an ornate bronze pin.
<Ghendalt> Junan! It's been far too long.
<Junan> That it has. Both our lives are filled with distractions.
<Ghendalt> It seems every week I hear your name again and I think to myself, "Ghendalt, you fool, why haven't you invited the boy over?" And then something else takes you out of town. Sometimes very far out of town.
<Junan> Farther than I would have wanted, that's for sure.
<Ghendalt> I don't suppose you brought me back anything nice?
<Junan> I had found this wonderful red vintage, but when our host decided to undo reality, it was lost.
<Ghendalt> Shame, really.
<Ghendalt> Would it even be possible to identify something as belonging to another ... world? Is that even the right word for it?
<Ghendalt> You can only imagine what someone would pay for a scrap of rock or a cup of dirt from such a place - if it could be verified.
<Junan> that would be the crux of such a proposal
<Ghendalt> Because I'm willing to fund another trip, if that's a possibility. And of course if you're willing.
<Junan> One would have to divine another location, which I know not how to do, and then manipulate the magic necessary to get there, without the aid of a Saint... if that even maters... I'm sure your resources are vast my friend.
<Junan> I just do not see them expended in such a risky venture.
<Ghendalt> Ah, too bad.
<Ghendalt> But probably for the best.
<Ghendalt> You may be far too busy for anything like that, in the near future, regardless.
<Ghendalt> If the General can be taken at her word, which she can, normally.
<Junan> Oh, she has told you something? All my recent plans involve finding a nicer place to live and perhapse a brief trip home.
<Ghendalt> Apparently when Kikhash turned in his resignation, he specifically recommended you to replace him.
<Ghendalt> And of course the General came to ask my opinion of the matter.
<Junan> I had heard that Kikhash might have mentioned me... what did you tell the General
<Ghendalt> Mainly I had to convince her that you were too honest to be in my corrupt pockets.
<Ghendalt> Not that I think you're incorruptible - just that nothing I have to offer is likely to entice you in that direction.
<Junan> oh come now, your wine rack is very enticing
<Ghendalt> But also readily available. I can hardly start holding it back on you now.
* Junan chuckles
<Junan> She'll make her own choice regardless of your input. The fact she asked at least means she's seriously considering.
<Ghendalt> She is. If she offers it, I recommend that you take it.
<Ghendalt> The only way this place transitions to a civil government is to stop getting so many Choradani sentinels in places of power.
<Junan> If she does I will, if she doesn't I'll keep doing what I'm doing.
<Junan> I do agree with you there though
<Ghendalt> There's another matter that I did want to talk with you about.
<Junan> when you are trained to use a sword, every problem starts to look like a neck
* Ghendalt pauses awkwardly.
<Junan> Eh? Whats this? Out with it.
<Ghendalt> The General has also taken me into her confidence regarding the strange matters out in the forest. Do I understand correctly that Brother Bones is ... joining the forest as some sort of spirit?
<Junan> something like that... I'm not sure I really understand it, honestly.
* Ghendalt shakes his head, with a strange look on his face.
<Ghendalt> We have never really talked about him, have we?
<Junan> No... your interest surprises me.
<Ghendalt> Why is that?
<Junan> recluse mystic and forest spirits... not exactly tangible resources
<Ghendalt> Hmmm.
* Ghendalt pauses again.
<Ghendalt> Did you know that we knew each other, back in Lunduso, once upon a time? When he was merely Tevez and I was merely Ghendalt, Golden.
<Junan> I did not know you had history
<Ghendalt> We were just lads. Our paths led in different directions - his, in the mastery of the mystical arts, and mine in politics, of course.
* Junan nods listening
<Ghendalt> I've been meaning to talk with him for some time. But the thing is, you see, that he thinks I have forgotten him. Or rather, that I have been made to forget him.
<Ghendalt> As it turns out he is possessed of a spell, a great incantation, that pulls the knowledge of some person from the victim, and stores it away in a jewel. And indeed, he had done so: stripped me of any knowledge of him. This was just before he fled, you see.
<Ghendalt> But as it turns out, a Senator has his own magic tricks, at least, one gifted in finding and trading in magic jewels. And someone entrusted with a gem can be made to un-entrust it. And a binding unbound.
<Junan> And why did he feel he needed to erase his memory from you?
<Ghendalt> Well, I can guess, of course. You'd have to ask him precisely. We know, or knew, a lot of how each other came to achieve our station in life. Being of the same age, and growing up in the same place at the same time, in similar circumstance.
<Junan> well that is interesting
<Ghendalt> So part of me has always wondered whether I might go rekindle the old connection.
<Junan> I appreciate the trust you have in me, in telling me this.
<Junan> My understanding it may be some time before he emerges from what is happening to them.
<Ghendalt> Like dirt from an imaginary world that no one believes you actually visited, you would have a great deal of difficulty using this conversation to your advantage.
<Junan> You are my friend. I would not do such a thing, regardless of the difficulty.
<Ghendalt> Tevez was my friend, once.
<Junan> I cannot speak to actions or intents of others, but I am not one to betray the trust of those close to me.
* Ghendalt nods.
<Ghendalt> I'm sure you're not.
<Ghendalt> In any case, it's a little late perhaps, to reintroduce myself. It is a little hard to know, after so many years, how one would start the conversation. "So, turns out I remember you after all", that sort of thing.
<Junan> you could just walk up and slap him and say "thats for taking my memories, ass!"
* Ghendalt laughs.
<Ghendalt> He might appreciate that. Being treated as a human, rather than a folktale.
<Ghendalt> He - was? - is? - close with your young friend Daifan, no? I wonder what they talk about, when they have a moment alone. She reminds me of many old friends from days ago.
<Junan> I could facilitate a conversation between you and Daifan. What she decides to disclose to you, would likely depend on you.
<Ghendalt> Maybe someday.
<Ghendalt> But perhaps it is just an idle thought. It has always been my experience, and to my expedience, to let the past be the past. That is how one becomes the Senator, the Rumordi, and not merely Ghendalt or Golden, after all.
<Junan> If you do decide to make thought action, I will aid in what way I can.
<Ghendalt> I know you will.
<Junan> until then, I will gladly keep drinking your wine, enjoy your food, and the pleasure of company and conversation
* Ghendalt laughs
<Ghendalt> Then let us toast to the future, and not the past!
* Ghendalt raises his glass.
* Junan raises his glass to his
Llillilli and Shulilae make plans for a new path
<AshnabisNarrator> Llillilli, your urge to murder the entire Maiden's Voice cult and throw their beloved saint into the deep sea is mitigated only by your desire to get home to your family.
<AshnabisNarrator> No one is at home when you arrive, but you quickly head over to the hifishae and find Thelef with both Shulilae and Helithae, and of course your little ones.
<Llillilli> Hello?
* Atsa is now known as Thelef
* Ghendalt is now known as Shulilae
<Shulilae> Revered one! Oh, you're back!
<Llillilli> Yes, just now.
<Llillilli> Is everything alright here?
<Shulilae> It is now!
* Thelef puts the baby back into the pool to come and give you a hug.
<Llillilli> I'm sorry to have disappeared like that..
* Llillilli hugs back tightly.
<Thelef> I'm glad you're okay.
<Shulilae> We were worried, of course.
<Llillilli> That group tried to take us with them to their... I don't know, other world.
<Llillilli> But the other world didn't want them either.
<Shulilae> How strange. I have always espoused that worlds have consciousness. But perhaps not quite so literally.
<Llillilli> The... It spoke of this one as though it was the same.
<Llillilli> Well, not the same. The same kind.
<Llillilli> It was... odd.
<Shulilae> Curious, curious.
<Shulilae> Thelef, if I might ... I know you must want to get home with Lllillilli, but perhaps I could take her for a walk in nature, while you stay here with the younglings?
<Thelef> Of course. I'll see you soon, okay?
* Thelef says to you.
* Llillilli nods.
* Shulilae takes you out into the traces of the swamp left east of the city.
<Shulilae> I heard what you did, at the court. For me, for all of us.
<Llillilli> Oh... Did Thelef tell you, then?
<Shulilae> Well, originally I heard something from some friends I still have, in Sulise. They are few, now, but they are still there.
<Shulilae> But then yes, I asked Thelef about it, and he told me more.
* Llillilli nods.
<Shulilae> There is a part of me, I admit, that wishes that you had not stood up for me. That you had agreed to the terms that Whuthe set before you. I could have borne it, for myself.
<Llillilli> I could never turn my back on you.
<Llillilli> You are family...
<Shulilae> I know that.
<Llillilli> And... it would have been wrong.
<Shulilae> And I love you all the more for knowing your heart and staying true to that.
* Llillilli smiles.
<Llillilli> What do you think will happen?
<Shulilae> That's hard to say. Much depends on Fellis. Their power is reduced but still significant. And they can be patient, whereas we can less afford to be.
* Llillilli nods.
<Llillilli> They are a coward.
<Shulilae> The strange thing is, I do understand Fellis, in a way, though we will never share the same waters.
<Shulilae> They see humans here, more and more every year, and they fear what is happening to us. They fear that by admitting the huwhi to our kind, we lose what makes us hith. They turn inward, into their own rites.
<Shulilae> What Fellis forgets is that there is more than one way to be hith, just as there is more than one way to be human.
<Llillilli> Yes.
<Llillilli> He does not want to hear it.
<Llillilli> He has made himself too small.
<Shulilae> But the question then is not what happens, but what do we do.
<Llillilli> Mm.
<Shulilae> I have my opinions but that is all they are, opinions
<Llillilli> I would like to hear them.
<Shulilae> I think we need to stop wanting to change the minds of those in Sulise. To see the world for what it is, and then build what we want, regardless.
<Shulilae> You did not ask to be selleluf. The sun chose you, and that surely frightens them. As it should. But we can no more ask that it did not happen than to reverse the sunrise. We can merely choose what to do with the day now that dawn has broken.
* Llillilli nods.
<Llillilli> I have thought a little about some of what Whuthe said. Maybe I should go to Pfaeshes. Maybe we should start there.
<Shulilae> Hmm, perhaps. Pfaeshes is part of the kingdom of Sulise. But it is also where it all started, the huwhi.
<Shulilae> Or we could just build our community here.
* Llillilli nods slowly.
<Llillilli> We have made a good start, with the young ones. :3
<Shulilae> Perhaps we have been thinking too small. We started by building a hifishae, for us, for our little family. But just like Soesoe and Pappe, perhaps we need to build a theth, a town.
<Shulilae> Or even more, a nation, a thaeloeth.
* Llillilli 's eyes widen.
<Llillilli> Where would we go?
<Llillilli> ... Here?
* Llillilli looks around the swamp
<Shulilae> Why not here?
<Shulilae> Kaskind is not part of Sulise; Whuthe holds no dominion here.
* Llillilli smiles slowly.
<Llillilli> Why not?
* Llillilli agrees
<Shulilae> Welll, I am sure your General would have some words to say about all of this. But then, we are not looking to claim absolute dominion, or build an army, or any of the things that would threaten her.
* Llillilli nods
<Llillilli> We could make a claim. I know some people.
* Shulilae laughs.
<Shulilae> Of course, the question is, what would we do with it
<Llillilli> The swamp? Or the town?
<Shulilae> Either, I suppose.
<Shulilae> I am not built to lead others. I am too quiet. Keep to myself. My ideas are my own.
<Llillilli> Hm. I don't know that I am either.
<Llillilli> I never know what to say, and then I say too much.
<Shulilae> No, but you are a figurehead to the people. All the people.
<Shulilae> Thelef is a leader, but he also owes much fealty to Whuthe. That is not easily abandoned.
* Llillilli sighs.
<Llillilli> Well... as long as I have you and him, and the others to give me advice...
<Llillilli> I would try.
<Shulilae> That is all we can do.
<Llillilli> I would like to build a place where people can feel they belong.
<Shulilae> There might be compromises needed. Some may want to farm fos here - and we would have to decide how we feel about that.
<Llillilli> I don't want to bring all the garbage that the corps uses
<Shulilae> You have many strengths, but compromise is not one of them.
* Llillilli smiles
<Llillilli> I know.
<Shulilae> There will be those who call us all shulli, heretics. Both from your people and from mine.
* Llillilli snorts.
<Llillilli> Let them
<Shulilae> Well then ... we should do it.
* Llillilli grins.
<Llillilli> Yes we should.
<Shulilae> Well then ... let's get back to the children. You'll want to spend some time with them I'm sure.
* Llillilli nods.
<Llillilli> I don't know how long we were gone...
<Shulilae> Oh ... ahhh .two days, no, three?
<Shulilae> Too long, but not that long.
* Llillilli looks relieved.
<Llillilli> Well, it felt too long,
<Shulilae> Let's remedy that, then.
* Shulilae walks with you back to the pools where Thelef is splashing around with the little ones.
Lentus confers with Jimba about setting up an advisory council
<AshnabisNarrator> Jimba, fortunately your absence, while alarming to Kayibir, Aptan, and the others, doesn't seem to have been long enough or upsetting enough to interfere with the smooth operation of your business affairs.
<AshnabisNarrator> Of course everyone is happy to see you back. Turns out in your absence, Kayibir landed a major deal for some cloth. Maybe there's an honest pirate in her after all.
<AshnabisNarrator> The following day, you're at the warehouse when Lentus sticks his head in the door.
<Lentus> Jimba, you here?
<Jimba> In here.
* Lentus has his beard in a fine braid, and is wearing a deep blue dashi with fine embroidery at the sleeves.
* Jimba will go to find him.
<Lentus> Jimba, my friend! I have been thinking, and I have come to you to do some more thinking.
<Jimba> Aren't you looking fancy today?
* Jimba smiles.
<Jimba> Happy to help. What're you thinking?
<Lentus> You remember of course my young friends in the Ulonian Regiment, who have sworn their swords to me, whether I would have them or no.
* Jimba chuckles.
<Jimba> Of course.
<Lentus> And I am so thankful for your help in getting the newcomers settled. But a new problem may be emerging.
<Jimba> What seems to be the trouble?
<Lentus> It seems my new soldiers have been talking to my new kin, the Lentus. And I think you are aware that my kin, well, they are sometimes hot of temper, and hardly enamored with the sentinels in Kaskind.
* Jimba nods.
<Lentus> My first worry was that perhaps the Ulonians and the Lentus would take to quarreling with one another. But I will say, that was not what happened.
<Lentus> The Ulonians got to talking, over some beer, about their longstanding dislike for the sentinels of Choradan. And the Lentus, in turn, over some beer, raised their own grievances from the time that the Fort was established.
<Lentus> And now, well ... I am afraid I have created a monster. The Ulonians and the Lentus, together, aim to overthrow the fort, to bring in a new order.
<Jimba> I take it you'd prefer they didn't?
* Jimba says lightly.
<Lentus> These youths, they have not seen war, the way I have. They see glory, and the elimination of oppression.
<Lentus> I understand it. But I cannot countenance it.
<Jimba> What do you think of their chances?
<Lentus> The Lentus are my kin. I think they can do anything they put their minds to, with their boundless energy. And I think the Ulonians are possessed of centuries of resentment against the sentinels in power. Together ... the question is what they should do, not what they can.
<Lentus> So, I am thinking of what I can do with them. Because they are not wrong, that a military government like the Fort, runs risks.
<Jimba> I've been considering that very subject myself.
<Jimba> What were you thinking of doing with the Ulonians and Lentus?
<Lentus> I would like to turn all their energies to good. But I do not know this place and its customs the way you do.
<Lentus> So I am coming to ask you what you think.
* Jimba considers.
<Jimba> You said "a military government like the Fort runs risks." Did you have something else in mind?
<Lentus> Well.
<Lentus> General Ghurtai seems to be a good sort. But her leadership is dependent on political whims from Choradan. And I know all about what happens when a good general is replaced by bad.
<Lentus> So the risk is that our fate is in the hands of some field marshal hundreds of leagues away.
<Jimba> You think we'd do better with one nearby?
<Lentus> Maybe.
<Lentus> Liraula, I think she is worried that anything we do might risk her deal with the Fort. And she and Bohin have been so kind to me, I do not want to anger her. Also, she scares me.
<Lentus> She did offer to take them into the Black Stork. But I worry they are not made for the sea. And that is just more fighting, perhaps.
<Lentus> And perhaps just puts her as our new general.
* Jimba nods.
<Jimba> I think a singular authority is not in our best interest.
<Jimba> We don't have one even now, but the illusion of one.
* Lentus nods.
<Lentus> You know all these people better than I do, I feel. And you have always counselled me fairly, without thought of advantage for yourself. What would you do, if you could?
<Jimba> If I could?
<Lentus> Yes, if you could.
<Jimba> I'd create a council. A singular authority, but not a singular figure. A place where all of the factions and interests have a voice. Let them scheme in public, in view of everyone. Honest discussion, a shared rule for a shared good.
<Jimba> We all do ourselves a disservice in trying to take everything.
<Jimba> I'd make them realize we'd all have more if we could accept less than all or nothing.
<Lentus> A republic, then? In my day they used to hang republicans.
* Jimba chuckles.
<Jimba> I'm already a pirate.
<Lentus> A murderous pirate admiral, no less.
<Jimba> So what's one more onerous label?
<Lentus> It may take a lifetime of work to make it a reality. And there will be many in opposition.
<Jimba> You have more experience with both lifetimes and opposition. What do you think?
<Lentus> I am the Stone Prince, so no more will I fight. But I will stand with you on this.
<Jimba> I couldn't ask for more, or a better partner.
* Lentus embraces you.
<Lentus> Then we are agreed.
* Jimba nods.
<Jimba> We've got...a lot of work to do.
<Lentus> Yes, starting with cleaning up after the mess my two groups of allies made of the longhouse after their latest revelry.
* Jimba laughs.
<Jimba> Well, more hands make lighter work. Maybe I can help.
<Jimba> I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty.
<Lentus> Nor am I.
* Lentus smiles.
Veznara and Daifan have a map room meeting about theology
* Daifan is in the maproom this time, putting some things away
* Veznara enters and spots Daifan
<Veznara> Oh, Daifan! Good...
<Veznara> How are you?
* Veznara says, closing the door for privacy...
<Daifan> Better for being home. How are you?
<Veznara> Busy. We, ah, have a new baby to look after...
<Daifan> ahhh, yes.
<Daifan> good luck.
* Daifan says, flashing a sign of fortune
<Veznara> Thank you. Her name is Emnai... after Princess Galdai's mother.
* Daifan nods
<Veznara> It would probably have been more standard to name her after Galdai herself, but... well, it's not unusual, I think.
<Veznara> I hope that a loving upbringing will lead her to become a good person.
<Daifan> why not after the princess's mother?
<Veznara> I suppose that would have been one choice... but this is a new name. The name of someone related to Ziftu, but that doesn't belong to anyone she actually knew.
<Veznara> A sort of fresh start, I guess?
<Veznara> If that makes sense...
<Daifan> Mmhmm
* Daifan nods
<Daifan> I can see that
<Veznara> Anyway... speaking of fresh starts... there's something I need to discuss with you.
<Daifan> ..yes?
<Veznara> I.. well, you remember just before we were taken away... I mentioned that I'd gone on a secret trip to the Auggi.
<Daifan> I recall...
<Veznara> And with Bitsaar's help, I was able to ask questions of that Ancestor. The one who claimed to be... who he claimed to be.
<Veznara> The Ancestors are not always correct, of course - but that was what he believed.
<Daifan> okay.
<Veznara> When we heard who he claimed to be... and how he said his mother died... that led to one other question.
<Veznara> We asked what his mother actually taught her followers about the Corpseborn.
<Veznara> He answered that... according to his mothers' followers, she said that a child born of the dead held special power over fate because of their close contact with death when they entered the world... and that they are a blessing.
* Veznara watches Daifan carefully for a reaction
<Daifan> well, yes.
<Veznara> Is that what is taught among you?
<Daifan> its something we know
<Veznara> But are there tales that the Prophetess Zunuga said so?
<Daifan> not really.
<Daifan> She's not someone who is very important to us
<Daifan> why would she be?
<Veznara> Because she came back from the dead, and founded our religion. And because if *she* actually said that the Corpseborn are a blessing, then that is how the Corpseborn should be treated.
<Veznara> If this is true... our whole society is upside down, and people don't even realize it!
<Veznara> You're treated the exact opposite of how you *should
* be treated!
* Daifan sighs
<Daifan> what do you want from me?
<Veznara> Advice? Guidance? Help in spreading the truth?
<Veznara> Forgiveness, for all the times I treated you with less kindness than I should have?
<Daifan> If your dead prophetess had said 'actually what you see today is fine', what would you think?
<Daifan> that it was fine?
<Veznara> Perhaps... that she was less infallible than I had always assumed.
<Veznara> But she did *not
* say it was all fine.
<Veznara> All the rest of the world is laboring under the delusion that she did - but she didn't!
<Daifan> I'm sure they're not.
<Daifan> Mostly they don't think about it al all
<Daifan> They are scared of us, and this isn't going to change that
<Veznara> Maybe it can.
<Veznara> If people were made to fear you where once they didn't, why can't they be made to value you where now they fear?
* Daifan sighs again
<Daifan> I dn't want to be anyone's blessing unless I choose to be.
<Veznara> No, I understand that. I don't want to make the Corpseborn seen as... an overclass, either. Untouchable, but in a different way? No.
<Veznara> But I do want to change a world where people can be treated badly for such a reason.
<Veznara> Where a whole village can be uprooted and send far away as fodder for an evil woman's magical experiments.
<Veznara> There has to be a better way between those extremes.
<Daifan> I don't really like your reason. I think its a bad reason. It makes me think that you think it is more important that what we want for ourselves
<Veznara> Do most of you prefer the way things are?
<Daifan> If this is work you want to do, to help change things for us, then you have a lot of learning an caching up to do.
<Veznara> How, then?
<Daifan> There are people I can put you in touch with
<Daifan> But you have to promise me that you will listen
* Veznara pauses, then nods.
<Daifan> to what *we* want, not what you think is best for us.
<Veznara> Yes, of course. But... different people may want different things.
<Daifan> of course
<Daifan> that's always how it is
<Daifan> but its not your place to decide.
<Veznara> No. But the truth is the truth.
<Veznara> What people do with it... is up to them.
<Daifan> Mmmhmm.
<Daifan> Well. I will put you in touch, then.
* Veznara smiles tentatively
<Veznara> Thank you, Daifan.
<Daifan> You're welcome
Utus lets the team know he's retiring
<AshnabisNarrator> It's been a week or more now since your return from the strange Fenead Asath. Things are more or less back to normal, whatever that means in this insane place. But today, Utus has called you all in to the land registry for a special meeting.
<AshnabisNarrator> It's rare enough for you to be back here, these days. The last time, you think, was when the other five of you were here back in Shosolda, to plan for retrieving Daifan from the Vine-hag.
<AshnabisNarrator> As you pass by you see a passel of what look to be mere children, but you realize after a moment's glance that they must be the newest recruits to the registry, and that in fact they're probably not more than a year or two younger than you. You silently wish them well.
<AshnabisNarrator> The map room in the registry is laid out in expectation of your arrival. Utus sits at one end of the table.
* Lentus is now known as Utus
* Utus is wearing a thin silk shirt of black and grey over a grey dashi. His envoy's cap sits atop his head.
<Utus> Hello, everyone. Have a seat.
* Llillilli does so
* Veznara smiles in greeting, and sits as instructed
* Jimba does so.
* Daifan will settle into their usual place
<Katenzhi> /me will actually sit for once.
<Jimba> Hello, Utus. What's the hubbub?
<Utus> Thank you all for coming. I won't keep you long.
<Utus> I wanted to let you know that I have tendered my resignation with the General as of this morning.
<Daifan> oh!
<Jimba> What?
<Jimba> Why?
<Veznara> Oh! I'm sorry to hear that, Utus. I hope it's for a happy reason?
<Utus> Well. There have been a lot of changes at the Fort lately, some for good, some for ill. No doubt you are aware of some of that.
<Utus> But mainly it's just that I'm not so young as I was and I want to use my time, while I'm still strong, to do what I prefer rather than what others prefer.
<Llillilli> Mm.
<Katenzhi> What are you going to do then?
<Utus> My wife and I are thinking we might travel back to Omba for a while. We have a grandchild just newborn, that seems like a fine reason.
<Veznara> Oh, congratulations!
* Katenzhi smiles.
<Utus> But not forever. We'd come back I'm sure. I also have kin here who I need time to reconnect with. A daughter who I hardly ever see. That sort of thing.
<Veznara> Well, we'll miss you while you're away. And here, too.
<Daifan> Mmmhmm
<Jimba> That is a good reason to leave, though. Congrats. :)
<Jimba> You'll have to let us buy you a drink before you go.
<Katenzhi> And look us up when you get back.
<Utus> I will do so, with pleasure.
<Utus> And so if any of you wants the job, there may be an opening for commissioner of lands. The pay is good and there is very little chance that you'll be turned into a shrub or pulled into, well, wherever it is that you were most recently.
<Jimba> I nominate Llillilli. ;)
* Llillilli snorts.
<Llillilli> No thanks
* Jimba laughs.
<Llillilli> You do it.
<Jimba> I might throw my hat in. Not this hat, though, it's too nice. One of my old hats.
* Utus laughs.
<Utus> A fine hat is a mandatory part of the job, I hear.
* Jimba smiles.
<Katenzhi> That and the ability to deal with unruly surveyors.
* Katenzhi grins.
<Jimba> Well, I know people who can handle that, certainly.
<Utus> Well, in any case, it's not my problem any longer. The General can sort out her own staffing.
* Jimba nods.
<Jimba> We'll be sorry to see you go.
* Daifan considers telling Moss he shoudl apply just to see how that goes
* Daifan nods in agreement
<Utus> Well, in any event. I'm heading home now, but I'll leave you the room for as long as you need it today.
<Utus> Take care of each other, you hear me?
<Jimba> And you take care of yourself.
<Katenzhi> We will. Safe travels.
<Veznara> Yes. Goodbye, Utus.
<Daifan> Mmhmm
* Utus leaves.
* Llillilli nods.
* Jimba will stand up to shake his hand.
* Daifan will give him a fortune
One last group conversation
<Jimba> (After he leaves) What about you, Daifan? You want to try for the job?
* Daifan laughs
<Daifan> No, I have too many other things to do I May ask Suiledein and see what he thinks, though...
* Jimba nods.
<Daifan> Though I think you would be a good onw
<Daifan> Comissioner, I mean
* Veznara nods
<Veznara> You were serious about applying, I hope?
<Katenzhi> If you want to change things, it's a good start.
<Jimba> Oh, absolutely.
<Jimba> I was kind of hoping to talk to you all about something related, actually.
<Daifan> oh?
<Katenzhi> I'm retired from surveying, if that's what you're asking.
* Jimba steps over to the door to check outside to see if we'd likely be overheard.
<Jimba> I had a visit from the Stone Prince the other day.
<Veznara> Oh?
<Llillilli> What did he want?
<Jimba> Help in deciding what to do with a lineage and an armed force who want to follow him into...whatever he may lead them into.
<Veznara> I take it you have ideas for him? Or do you want us to help come up with some?
<Jimba> Well, the gist of the conversation was this: what would you think about the Republic of Ashnabis?
<Katenzhi> The what now?
<Llillilli> What does that mean?
<Jimba> Self-rule.
<Jimba> A voice for all people.
<Llillilli> Really all people?
* Llillilli says skeptically
<Katenzhi> Like...Like a council?
<Jimba> Really.
* Jimba nods to Kat.
<Daifan> ...all?
<Jimba> All.
<Jimba> We have an opportunity to make a place for everyone.
<Daifan> Mmhmm. Yes.
<Jimba> I'm not saying it will be easy, but we have allies. Buy-in.
* Llillilli nods...
<Veznara> And there will be opponents, too..
<Katenzhi> What the hell. It can't be harder than travelling dimensions.
<Jimba> There will always be opposition to change, even for the better.
<Jimba> But I believe we can do it.
<Llillilli> It *would* be for the better.
<Veznara> Yes. I believe many things can change for the better. With work and luck...
<Veznara> And determination.
<Veznara> And the right group of people.
* Jimba nods.
<Jimba> I can't think of a better one.
<Katenzhi> You know I'm in.
<Llillilli> I would help.
<Daifan> Yes, I'm in. Junan will be too.
* Veznara nods
<Jimba> See? We're already representing others. ;)
* Daifan smirks at that
Conclusion
<AshnabisNarrator> The meeting concludes with what appears to be an agreement. As you leave the building, the sun is setting over Nimneha Bay, with the tall ships in the harbor outlined along the horizon.
<AshnabisNarrator> The pungent smells of the Sestapor, the trees and ferns more distant every year, mix with the city smells, and the sounds of children running in the street are louder than the waves crashing against the rocks.
<AshnabisNarrator> The Fort stands, as always, where the Maripak, or North Kaskos, as it will surely be remembered in the future, flows into the sea. You see many futures for it, against the sunset. Who can say which will come to pass?
<AshnabisNarrator> Of course: it is only for you to say.
<AshnabisNarrator> The End.
