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[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

*A certain being is sitting with his back against the well, reading a book with a plain red cover. He's humming tonelessly to himself as he flips pages and in general he seems exceedingly bored. A better distraction than the interminable tome would be welcomed.*

Comments

[dee_lorean81]

[A DeLorean zooms up beside the well, coming to a halt with a screech of tires and a slight smell of burnt rubber. It flashes its headlights -- then, suddenly, it is a small girl instead, looking curiously at the book in Eaten's hands] Whatcha reading?

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

*He looks up sharply, startled, then relaxes.* Just a Book of Crimson Prayer. Most of it is nonsense, but then most religions are full of nonsense. Everything that people do winds up with a share of that.

Do you know any good books?

[dee_lorean81]

Oh. [she shrugs] I dunno much about religion. None of my family goes to church or anything like that.

Yeah! [then, qualifying] Well, I think they're good, but I dunno if you would. What do you think of physics books?

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

Probably for the best. It's amazing how many fanatics there are out there.

I'm not sure if my reality has anything like the same laws that yours does, so they might not be of much use.

[dee_lorean81]

Yeah, Dad's told me about some of the ones he saw in the Chicago he and Victor originally ended up in. The ones who ended up hating -- well, people like him and Victor. [she grimaces -- makes her glad she didn't arrive in the middle of THAT mess!] People can be really nasty to anyone they think is "wrong" somehow.

[she smiles] Fair enough -- I just like to read them to see what they say. I like learning about science and how the world works.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

People are also very fast to pick any difference as a wrong.

I would be as well, in your place. I know more than enough about my own universe, that's all. Perhaps learning about yours is less worrying.

[dee_lorean81]

Oooh yeah. I'm really glad I didn't end up sucked into that world by the Rift. I don't know what anyone there would have made of a shape-shifting DeLorean.

Yeah, well, in my case, I think some of that is having a scientist for a dad. And being science myself. [she giggles] And I would think so. Maybe. Depends on how you feel about quantum stuff.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

It's even odds between completely ignoring it, because there are squid in hats walking around and nothing less than that is notable, or burning you at the stake. Admittedly burning people doesn't work very well. Drowning people results in very creepy things, so that's out too. Capital punishment isn't really a thing in the Neath, not the way it would be on the Surface.

I have no idea what the word 'quantum' means, do tell.

[dee_lorean81]

[Dee winces] Yeah, but still. . .even if it doesn't work, I don't want to get burnt at the stake. Probably still hurts a lot, doesn't it?

[the opportunity to talk science brightens her up again] Oh, it refers to the smallest amount of a thing that you can have. A quantum of light, for example, is a photon. And these really small amounts of things can do some weird stuff. Like, being both a wave and a particle at the same time.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

I imagine so.

I'm sure that there would be a Law against such nonsense where I'm from. And sunlight is Law, so it would have to obey. Can't keep from obeying yourself. *He thinks a moment.* Maybe there already is such a Law. Only in the Neath would light be free.

[dee_lorean81]

Yeah, wanna skip that. Leaving fire trails behind me when I go fast is enough, thanks!

Heh, yeah. . .I wonder if your world even has photons. Or any quantum stuff. I mean, it all seems to work a lot differently from my world. As far as I know, sunlight isn't the literal law of the universe where I'm from.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

I imagine you'd have to ask the Judgements about how my universe works. They'd know better than anyone else.

[dee_lorean81]

I would hope so, given they're in charge. Be like Dad not knowing how I worked despite being the one who -- well, I guess he didn't make the car, but he did all the bits that make me me.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

Some of them are petty enough to make you wonder. Not that my kind have any room to talk.

[dee_lorean81]

[shrugs] Petty doesn't mean stupid. Just means you're kind of a jerk.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

Being small-minded does tend to be implied, though.

[dee_lorean81]

Yeah, true. . .but, judging by some of Victor's stories about the Victorian nobility his parents made him spend time with, the pettiest people know a lot about the things they want to be petty about. Usually about what fork to use and stuff in his case, but. . .

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

Thus small-minded. The correct fork is not important to anything in the wider world, it is not noble or awe-inspiring and it is honestly not worth learning.

[dee_lorean81]

Heh, good point. But try telling them that. Victor said he once asked why they couldn't just use the same fork for everything and got an hour lecture on etiquette.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

Good on him for resisting. If only a little.

[dee_lorean81]

And in our house we don't give a toss about what forks you use, so yay for us, I guess. [chuckle] We've got better stuff to worry about.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

I suppose I wouldn't be much help with any of that. Few people need what I have to offer, and those who do are already mad enough that I can hardly cause any more damage.

[dee_lorean81]

Yeah. . .and I don't think any of the people following you care anything about what fork goes with salad, and which with the main course.

[thelightontheedgeofsleep]

No, although they might stab you with a fork if you tried to eat their food. Some of them would stab you with a knife for reasons far pettier.

But then that's true for many people I've never touched as well. Down in the dark where even death can be fixed, stabbing is more of an irritant than anything.

[dee_lorean81]

To be fair, I might stab somebody with a fork if they tried to eat my food. Though only after I'd told 'em "no" a couple of times.

[she nods] I can believe it. You take away the consequences for something, and suddenly all sorts of people are gonna be doing it.