Waking Dreams

    It is evening. The sky is ablaze with stars. Wake is at the outpost, where, for now, things are quiet. The stream of wagons has ceased for the day. The risk of monster issues, though far less than it was, is still present enough for the Baroness to take no chances. And to forbid others from doing so.

    This evening, the Baroness studies the sky above, her beloved at her side. They are both silent, wearing calm smiles on their faces. They form an interesting pair, with Tae dressed in a light, comfortable dress and Wake wearing leather pants and a form-fiting top.

Uta is approaching in what, for her, is just a normal stroll, but ends up being far too quiet for most people. In contrast to Wake and Tae, she is still wearing her starting gear (somewhere in the zone between a nurse's unirorm and a gi). She doesn't seem to be heading anywhere, just strolling around.

    It is some time before Wake speaks, though she does take note of Uta at some point. Perhaps it's just the danger of the area that has made her more wary. Finally though, she calls out, "Uta, dear! It is a joy to see you this evening. Aren't the stars a wonder this night?"

    Tae is startled at the sudden speech, and needs more than a glance to find out just where Uta is. She finally laughs softly, feeling rather embarassed. "Why, she is there," she says playfully, "I thought you were simply teasing me!"

Uta is startled at being addressed. "Oh! Wake! Tae! I didn't know you were here! And... it is, and they are, I am, and she wasn't, respectively!"

There is some silence, then she continues. "Fancy finding you here. What are you doing here at Castle Eas?"

Some things haven't changed since the last time, it seems.

    "Well, for the most part, I'm helping Goldenblade with the resources she needs to build out the road, these days," replies Wake. "Once that work is done, and the orc nests are completely wiped out, we will be ready for still larger works. Which is why we stay near the outpost and the first gate, rather than up into the village itself. Someday, though.. not too long from now, we will behold sunrise and sunsets over the castle in peace."

    Tae grins at Uta, "So you didn't see me and I didn't see you. A good thing we didn't run into each other. But it's an unusual place to come for a stroll. Still, I'm delighted you are here! Have you eaten yet? Would you like something?"

"Oh, yes. Fey Mood. Resonating with the Primordial Song. Paula's going to be intractable these days," Uta remarks, gaze lost in the distance. "Still, it's good that we're building a road. It's a matter of days before the acquisition of books will be done, and the sooner we can get a library set up, the better."

She grins. "Looking forward to that." She turns in the direction of the Castle, whether it is visible or not. "It's going to be /glorious/!"

Uta turns to Tae, "...yeah, I'm not sure why I'm here myself. I probably came to slaughter some orcs? Sounds like a good reason to come here. Or maybe to visit you two. That's an even better reason."

"...do you still have some of those gelatins that look like slimes?"

    Taeyeon laughs at the question. "Well, I have some ideas that might be even better. I don't have the jelly handy, though. At least not in a state where I could make something quite like that." She does have ideas, though. No shortage of them, honestly. "I'll be back for you two in a little while. When things are ready." She hugs Uta on the way out.

    The Baroness watches her love depart with a sigh. She eventually directs her attention back to Uta. "I am eager to hear more about the library. I hope that there is more I can do in the future to support you! I do have something in mind, though. I heard that someone may have made some progress on a printing press. That could make your dream of libraries come alive swiftly enough."

Uta hugs back a bit awkwardly (she apparently isn't very used to it), but doesn't seem to complain or dislike the act of affection. "Later, Tae!"

Uta exclaims "Yes!", hand balled up in a fist, at the mention of the printing press. "That would help a lot, indeed."

Uta moves to also lie down on the grass, next to Wake. "I don't remember if I've mentioned it already, but there's been development on the subject of the library." She settles down, hands behind her head, elbows sticking out. "We need to resort to all the possible tricks to keep nobles off our backs for ending their monopoly on culture, and I think I've come up with a pretty ingenious one, if I do say so myself."

She turns towards Wake. "We're going to have libraries be their own building. We're dedicating each building to a specific goddess. One per alliance. We will never /claim/ that each building is a temple, to have proper plausible deniability, but... you know, there'll be statues and dedications and thematic references to the relevant goddess. It will /feel/ like one, and, well, we will not say that it is NOT a temple, either." She smirks at Tae. "Would you want to antagonize such a place?"

    Wake settles on the grass next to Uta. She leans back, folding her arms beneath her head. The woman's eyes shift over to watch Uta for a moment, then return to studying the stars above.

    "The nobles are afraid of the libraries? I suppose ideas are dangerous enough. It is wise of them to fear enlightenment, for ignorance is needed for one man to believe another has, by manner of birth, the exclusive and absolute right to rule." Her tone betrays amusement over this.

    "Still, do you really think Landers would overthrow their rulers? It seems an odd thing to fear. And as for the dedication to a goddess, I suppose in some places that might help. At least here there will be no such need of odd subterfuge. What form of resistance have you encountered, though, that leads you to think in this direction?"

Uta keeps silent, and looks ahead of her, up, at the stars.

"I can't be /positive/ they fear this project, to be fair. But, thinking back of the world outside of here, what has history taught us that happens when someone challenges the monopoly on information of the ruling elite?" A pause. "As for more concrete hints, I've seen that nobles like to say no and slam doors in people's faces when someone wants to research specific subjects. They did it to me. That's what prompted me to start this project."

She sighs. "/Maybe/ it's just paranoia but... I'm playing it safe. I'm taking what little lessons I've learnt from pre-Apocalypse history. One, if you want to make an enemy, try to change something. Two, religious places have tended to keep nobles at bay. Either because they actually believe in the holiness of the place, but more likely because openly failing to comply with someone who ranks above you in the pecking order could give the people below you ideas?"

A little laugh, that is probably more like exhaling from the nose than anything else. "Not taking any chances."

    "I would trust your instincts on this matter," Wake replies, after taking a fair amount of time to think it through. "Change comes slowly. But yet here I am, a Baroness of the Dukedom. I represent one of the most unusual of changes, I suppose. I'm stepping into the realm of the People of the Land and hoping to turn things on their heads. If you find doors closing for you here, let me know. Or anywhere, really. I may be able to help out."

    For a time, the Baroness is silent as she tries to find the right words. "It occurs to me, Uta, that you may have another strike against you. Being what you are matters in the eyes of Landers, certainly. Racism is alive and well in this world." Wake sighs gently, rolling onto her side to consider Uta. "I have already heard several unpleasant opinions when I mention my hopes to settle many spriggans in Eas."

Uta inhales. Deeply. Then... bursts into laugher. A soft, quiet laughter, perhaps with just the slightest hint of resigned bitterness, but it's hard to tell. "Of course." She sighs. "We Spriggans... are not winning any popularity contest any time soon, no. Too much murder and betrayal in our Lore."

She pulls her chin 'up' from her resting position, to take a look at herself. She sighs, then lets her head fall back down on the grass. "I should probably do what we do best. Hide in the shadows, pull the strings form there, and let someone else take the spotlight. A puppet for misdirection purposes." She pauses. "Or maybe a capable ruler. Who knows."

More silence follows. "I understand that politics is a huge deal here in Eas. If necessary we could check with the people in Scale. I think they did a wonderful job in Tolbana... honestly, I love that city. If I was in Scale and didn't have a place in Carmina Gadelica Marina already, I'd absolutely go to live there. Just imagine. A town where nobody minds what you look like..." Her smile subconsciously widens a bit.

    "For some of us, this place has provided an escape from such things," replies Wake softly. "And we will create the same thing here, in time. Only better, because we aren't insanely directed towards clearing the tower and not caring much at all for how much suffering that causes." She is not terribly impressed by the Scale.

    "Ultimately, we will get there. In a way that doesn't trample Landers under our heel. And yes, the lore. It's funny, isn't it? To us, lore might as well have never even existed, but to those coded into being, it's as real as the day they arise to each morning."

    She looks off towards one of the buildings nearby and smiles. "The food will be ready soon, I imagine. Tae's recipes all seem to take roughly the same amount of time." She rises smoothly to her feet, straightening her top carefully. "And as for the spotlight, I would be happy to help, but I'm not sure how much is needed. Not yet. Let's finish the first part, and go from there. Everything depends on how well-used your work is. If Landers and adventurers both find the libraries attractive, they will thrive and take on a life of their own. Perhaps I should find out what a Lander would think of books.. it might be interesting."

"If we want to get annoyingly technical, right now the books are a Lander monopoly. Books are a monopoly of nobles, and Nobles are, with one notable exception," She gives Wake a knowing glance, "are universally Landers. As far as I know. So... I'd say they like them?"

She chuckles. "But I suppose you meant the Landers /who never had access to culture before/. Yes, that will be interesting." Her grin widens further. "It's ridiculous. I've done a larger amount of insane things in the last six months than in the rest of my life."

She sighs.

"Which brings us back to the main point. /Are/ Landers really /coded/? Is this really still a game? As I've been telling you, I'm not really sure anymore. And it's entierely possible that the Landers might be right in this. Maybe I really /am/ a Spriggan, now, and my people have really been ruthless murderers during the War..."

    "I hope that the Landers prove to be more than just simple code. I'd like to see if they can grow and develop into full personalities." The Baroness isn't certain, by any means.

    She raises her arms above her head and stretches, almost catlike, before slipping back into her usual, near-perfect posture.

    "As for the game.. I doubt it is what we think it is. I can't imagine I would still be alive out there. There's simply no way it would have been allowed."

    She turns a piercing glance towards Uta. "What your race is does not matter. What your people did or did not do in the past is what they did. It does not define you, Uta. If you truly are a Spriggan now, it does not matter in the least. Not to me. I judge by actions, and you are a precious friend."

Uta allows herself some time to take those words in. "Thanks, Baroness. Same here."

"...Speaking of which. There's been some strange happenings in Tolbana of late. Everyone looks like they stabbed their pet slime in the face, and wore the resulting polygons as a festive necklace. Nobody speaks, the whole city is tense, Setsuna lost a leg and he won't even say why. I have... uh... tried my hand at... ah... gathering information, but all I could find out is that some kind of creatures attacked Tolbana followinga mysterious white haired Spriggan, the whole ordeal ended with Setsuna losing his leg, and that there were screams in the battlefield. And that's all pieced together from second-hand information. Nobody actualyl saw the facts. Like, they heard the screams, saw Setsuna before and after the fact..."

    "Apparently we don't have quite as much to learn from Tolbana as we thought," murmurs Wake. She shakes her head at the news. "So that has happened, we have the attack tonight. I will need to find a way to accelerate my plans, and perhaps set up some new rules to ensure we remain safe." She looks upwards, towards the ruins of Eas, hidden in the mountains.

    Whatever she was thinking of, it is interrupted by the appearance of Tae. "Food is ready, my dears!"

    She ushers them to a table, where comfortable chairs are set and a meal is waiting for them. In the middle of the table is ETO's closest analogue to cheese cake, and it has been carefully sculpted into the likeness of a slime.

    "I hope you can rest now, and take a break from deep thought and ominous considerations," Tae says, laughing softly. "Those things are better shared in the light of day, in any case. The night belongs to stars and to dreams."