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Tumunzahar makes Menegroth look like a contract project. Which, the Dwarves assure her, it was. The stonework is astonishingly careful and beautiful, silky to the touch up close while from a distance it gives the impression of stretching on forever above, a sky of stone with crystals for stars. Vast natural cave systems are connected by dozens of perfectly smooth, gently sloped broad stone pathways from which the fall, if she fell, would be several miles down. There are handrails. "We use those to move materials carts," someone explains to her, "we're not going to be reckless."
There's an amphitheater, a place where a hundred of the stone walkways twine around to create space for a hundred thousand people to sit in close proximity, and someone is giving a lecture or a demonstration at the base of it, the seats closest to him filled with eager, tiny, bearded Dwarf-children.
And they spiral down, and down, and down, past waterfalls and egg-sized gemstones left half in the rock and halls of crystal. Everything grows gradually more ornate and more perfectly maintained and the clang of hammers fades behind them. "People say," her guide says, "that we only have a council instead of a single King because there were nine winners of the competition to design the throne so we couldn't just select one person to sit it." And they push open the doors to reveal, indeed, nine thrones so elaborate it would be hard to choose between them, and nine squat bearded people sitting them.
purposeful_glory
The Nolofinwëans in question did not attend the wedding but have restrained themselves from bothering the happy couple. Any of the happy couples.
purposeful_glory
Tep and Riaz were the only ones who really wanted me to personally officiate their wedding, but there are others who were married by the same people who witness transactions of hours and take notes on official business, and some who are not married but coupled up, yes, these people have no birth control that isn't 'turning into a werewolf for lifelong sterility' and I did not let the Quendi preach at them very much and there are ten thousand of them!
purposeful_glory
I expect it to be trivial once I can go find some charitably inclined galactic medic and bring them to have a look at the Men with various devices that go beep, but I don't know how to do it and even if I wanted to dig my implant out since I'm sure as hell not using it I doubt it could be usefully reverse-engineered on the time scale the Men need to be developing their foundational norms.
He frowns. And it's not really a defensible use of our time. Still.
If sexual boredom is a serious problem for you you should pick a fight with my father over homosexuality, lots of pretty Quendi girls will probably come out of the woodwork.
If sexual boredom is a serious problem for you you should pick a fight with my father over homosexuality, lots of pretty Quendi girls will probably come out of the woodwork.
purposeful_glory
I will make sure if I fight with your father about homosexuality I do it very loudly. Although I'm not sure that even thusly inclined Quendi are not a little scarily monogamous; I'd have to have some interesting conversations.
Tyelcormo strongly prefers girls but doesn't want to get married, ergo mostly has ridiculously short and ill-fated flings with men. I think that's a type, if not the most common type.
purposeful_glory
Short and ill-fated is definitely me and girls, although I usually try to go for 'amicably brief' over 'ill-fated' per se. It'd definitely be a step up from nothing.
And a step up from unaligned Ainur who only work for the Enemy part-time. The next one might not be so friendly with Thauron, and I'd rather you have other reasons not to go for it.
purposeful_glory
I wasn't all set to pounce on her before she said that or anything, I'd have to be reasonably confident that I didn't want to be armed and alert in her presence at all times and so on. Well, more armed than I am by being a frost giant.
I'm not questioning your judgment, just trying to think what resources we have to keep you happy and productive. And I'm lonely myself and perhaps empathize too much.
purposeful_glory
I'm coping. Productively, even. I will even visit a sketchy arms dealer or an infinity gem before I track down Sigyn once I have the spell managed. I am not a slave to my sex drive.
I expect that regaling your friends with tales of the stupid cylindrical planet and how you shredded its leadership will be more fun once all the fighting is over, anyway.
purposeful_glory
Well, if I'm going to tell them all the details I have to tell them what species I am, so I will probably start with friend, singular. But yes.
You don't expect 'I commanded the infinity stones, shredded some major deities because they had pissed me off, reshaped a planet, brought back the dead, and am a frost giant' to get a hostile reaction, surely? Are Asgardians stupid?
purposeful_glory
Well, Asgardians are in many respects noninterventionist. They'd think the first bit would be a splendid story but they would have considered it reasonable if I'd just left well enough alone. It's not going to compensate as well as it should, not for everyone. I'm not even sure on Thor, who I'd most like to be sure of. Frigg I am at least sure either knew all along or will know to lay the blame at Odin's feet and not mine. Miscellaneous acquaintances - yes, a lot of them are stupid, or act like it to fit in.
I meant more that reacting with hostility to deity-slayers is stupid whatever you may think of them. And I'm sorry. That sounds like an unpleasant environment to grow up in.
purposeful_glory
I managed. I had books. Eventually I had Sigyn. I had, in its peculiar way, the Tesseract. I suppose people might be frightened of me but they could also just think I was lying, if it came to that, unless I was holding an infinity stone while telling the story, which seems like a dumb thing to do.
Or unless you brought some curious Quendi along. Though if you expect a bad reaction, might be wise not to do that.
purposeful_glory
I would expect to see a bad reaction coming early enough to teleport away. I know Lúthien wants to see Asgard. Tyelcormo mentioned it too, I intend to take him on a bilgesnipe hunt.
I have no idea what a bilgesnipe is but am sure he'll love that. Hey, give us all free will and he can date girls.
purposeful_glory
If you mean he can do this on Asgard, Sigyn can help him find the ones who don't think boys knowing how to shoot things is a turn-off!
If he just makes it known that he's only interested in girls who can take him in a fight, will this successfully filter for the ones he wants? Because that's his policy here and serves well enough, but Asgard has frankly bizarre ideas about sex and gender.
purposeful_glory
That will filter, yes, with some talk in the background he can ignore; anyone who doesn't want to fight a boy will rule him out. Unless he pulls Sigyn-like shenanigans which seem unlike him.