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The Chronicle of Burne, and Some Others of Lesser Importance *Updated May 17th, 2009*
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<blockquote data-quote="Rolzup" data-source="post: 3408862" data-attributes="member: 10105"><p><strong>Interlude: “Eve of Instruction”</strong></p><p></p><p>"I should tell you a little something about the Miir Valley School. It is the most prestigious, well, the only formal training site for the Shirac mystical arts. At Miir they teach the pursuit of enlightenment is the noblest cause. And that all paths may lead to wisdom. Even the ones littered with corpses. So they are reluctant to kill fellow seekers. Which is handy in a profession where your colleagues can make stones burn and drop mountains on your head."</p><p></p><p>Meiji laughs and nods but doesn't comment.</p><p></p><p>"You see, some day one of these seekers will become the 'Way to Heaven', and lead the Great Ummab of the Shirac off this world and one step closer to God. The thing is, they have no idea which one it will be.</p><p></p><p>"By the way, that’s the proper name of the Shirac people, 'the Great Ummab'? It means something like ‘mob’ or ‘flock’, use it if want to score brownie points. And should a Shirac mention the 'Way to Heaven' in conversation, say 'Peace be upon them', or they're liable to try and convince you you're a newt.”</p><p></p><p>"I'll remember that. Not that I'm expecting to be having much in the way of conversation with any Shiracs in the near future, but then stranger things have happened." With a smile, Meiji adds, "I wasn't expecting this conversation either."</p><p></p><p>A look of consternation crosses the Lady Eve’s flushed and elegant face. "You know, Nadir might have assumed I’m a construct, like one of those fancy mechanical camp followers they tried building at the Acadeum Materia, what did they call them, oh yes, the Whoreforged, in which case he’ll head straight for Gallina. Imagine thinking I’m some kind of alchemical tart…."</p><p></p><p>"Those contain sulphur," Burne notes, "And must be cooked with great care indeed."</p><p></p><p>Everyone, except, perhaps, the Lady Eve, realizes that she is beginning to sound slightly intoxicated, after consuming enough wine to stupefy the ronin or send Dr. Wu to Heaven twice over. Meiji, who's been keeping an assiduous - and calculating - eye on her glass, makes a mental note of her capacity and refills it again without touching it.</p><p></p><p>Eve smiles and nods at Meiji. "Wrongheaded, but certainly useful for impressing the ladies".</p><p></p><p>Meiji chuckles, looking completely unabashed. "Mostly sheer laziness on my part, actually, but you do have a point." His grin gets a little broader and he says, "It's amazing how many places an extra hand can be helpful."</p><p></p><p>The Lady Eve gives a short, surprisingly snort-like laugh, "I've heard that one before. Remember, I'm popular at magician parties.”</p><p></p><p>Nonplussed by banter, Rackhir interrupts, "If I may ask, Lady Eve, how did you know we would be here tonight? Or Nadir? It can’t be a coincidence."</p><p></p><p>"You could say I foresaw it."</p><p></p><p>"So you’re an oracle?"</p><p></p><p>"Would an oracle have shoes like these? I don’t think so. Let me try and explain…</p><p></p><p>"Since my assignation with Hunger I’m never entirely ‘here’ or ‘there’, which has certain implications. I’m virtually impossible to harm, and sad to say there have been times I tried. More importantly, no barrier can stop me. Not even the one between today and yesterday. A charming and half-mad philosopher called it ‘doing the sidestep', or was it the ‘two-step’? I forget."</p><p></p><p>Meiji pauses, as a thought strikes him and adds, "Actually, if you can slide back and forth in time, wouldn't that help you find out what is likely to happen to him? Or us?"</p><p></p><p>"Chancy stuff, that," Burne interjects in an absent tone, "From what I've read, it's deucedly difficult to be sure if you're returning to the same 'when' that you've left. Some nonsense about free will, and temporal constants, and dead cats. Not really my field of study. Except for the cats."</p><p></p><p>"I wouldn’t know about that, I’m totally ignorant of science. I went to art school. Now have any of you read a Narayan author named Joost? No baser drunk ever picked up a quill. Anyway, he wrote an exceedingly slim novella called <em>Recollections of Things Last</em>. In it, he described both the recalled past and anticipated future as totally different worlds. He was on to something, and not just the best recipe for absinthe.</p><p></p><p>"When I do the sidestep, I travel to places… just next door. Oh, they’re a lot like here. Sure, the people may look more like birds or Thursday might come directly after Monday, or everyone is the walking dead. Where was I? They’re a lot like here, but time isn't always, sometimes it’s slower, sometimes faster. An observant girl can glean a few things, but remember it’s not precisely the same world I left.</p><p></p><p>"I suppose I could try stepping straight ahead forward, but, as you said Burne, I can’t sure what world I’d return to when I stepped back."</p><p></p><p>"In that case," says Meiji, "I'd much rather you didn't try it. We have to judge our priorities, after all. Getting rid of a Shirac mind-witch with delusions of grandeur is all well and good, but we have a date tomorrow."</p><p></p><p>"I wouldn't miss it for this world." says the Lady Eve.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Rolzup, post: 3408862, member: 10105"] [B]Interlude: “Eve of Instruction”[/B] "I should tell you a little something about the Miir Valley School. It is the most prestigious, well, the only formal training site for the Shirac mystical arts. At Miir they teach the pursuit of enlightenment is the noblest cause. And that all paths may lead to wisdom. Even the ones littered with corpses. So they are reluctant to kill fellow seekers. Which is handy in a profession where your colleagues can make stones burn and drop mountains on your head." Meiji laughs and nods but doesn't comment. "You see, some day one of these seekers will become the 'Way to Heaven', and lead the Great Ummab of the Shirac off this world and one step closer to God. The thing is, they have no idea which one it will be. "By the way, that’s the proper name of the Shirac people, 'the Great Ummab'? It means something like ‘mob’ or ‘flock’, use it if want to score brownie points. And should a Shirac mention the 'Way to Heaven' in conversation, say 'Peace be upon them', or they're liable to try and convince you you're a newt.” "I'll remember that. Not that I'm expecting to be having much in the way of conversation with any Shiracs in the near future, but then stranger things have happened." With a smile, Meiji adds, "I wasn't expecting this conversation either." A look of consternation crosses the Lady Eve’s flushed and elegant face. "You know, Nadir might have assumed I’m a construct, like one of those fancy mechanical camp followers they tried building at the Acadeum Materia, what did they call them, oh yes, the Whoreforged, in which case he’ll head straight for Gallina. Imagine thinking I’m some kind of alchemical tart…." "Those contain sulphur," Burne notes, "And must be cooked with great care indeed." Everyone, except, perhaps, the Lady Eve, realizes that she is beginning to sound slightly intoxicated, after consuming enough wine to stupefy the ronin or send Dr. Wu to Heaven twice over. Meiji, who's been keeping an assiduous - and calculating - eye on her glass, makes a mental note of her capacity and refills it again without touching it. Eve smiles and nods at Meiji. "Wrongheaded, but certainly useful for impressing the ladies". Meiji chuckles, looking completely unabashed. "Mostly sheer laziness on my part, actually, but you do have a point." His grin gets a little broader and he says, "It's amazing how many places an extra hand can be helpful." The Lady Eve gives a short, surprisingly snort-like laugh, "I've heard that one before. Remember, I'm popular at magician parties.” Nonplussed by banter, Rackhir interrupts, "If I may ask, Lady Eve, how did you know we would be here tonight? Or Nadir? It can’t be a coincidence." "You could say I foresaw it." "So you’re an oracle?" "Would an oracle have shoes like these? I don’t think so. Let me try and explain… "Since my assignation with Hunger I’m never entirely ‘here’ or ‘there’, which has certain implications. I’m virtually impossible to harm, and sad to say there have been times I tried. More importantly, no barrier can stop me. Not even the one between today and yesterday. A charming and half-mad philosopher called it ‘doing the sidestep', or was it the ‘two-step’? I forget." Meiji pauses, as a thought strikes him and adds, "Actually, if you can slide back and forth in time, wouldn't that help you find out what is likely to happen to him? Or us?" "Chancy stuff, that," Burne interjects in an absent tone, "From what I've read, it's deucedly difficult to be sure if you're returning to the same 'when' that you've left. Some nonsense about free will, and temporal constants, and dead cats. Not really my field of study. Except for the cats." "I wouldn’t know about that, I’m totally ignorant of science. I went to art school. Now have any of you read a Narayan author named Joost? No baser drunk ever picked up a quill. Anyway, he wrote an exceedingly slim novella called [I]Recollections of Things Last[/I]. In it, he described both the recalled past and anticipated future as totally different worlds. He was on to something, and not just the best recipe for absinthe. "When I do the sidestep, I travel to places… just next door. Oh, they’re a lot like here. Sure, the people may look more like birds or Thursday might come directly after Monday, or everyone is the walking dead. Where was I? They’re a lot like here, but time isn't always, sometimes it’s slower, sometimes faster. An observant girl can glean a few things, but remember it’s not precisely the same world I left. "I suppose I could try stepping straight ahead forward, but, as you said Burne, I can’t sure what world I’d return to when I stepped back." "In that case," says Meiji, "I'd much rather you didn't try it. We have to judge our priorities, after all. Getting rid of a Shirac mind-witch with delusions of grandeur is all well and good, but we have a date tomorrow." "I wouldn't miss it for this world." says the Lady Eve. [/QUOTE]
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The Chronicle of Burne, and Some Others of Lesser Importance *Updated May 17th, 2009*
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