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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.
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I'm not sure I want my language to have words for some things.
purposeful_glory
I can sort of understand the sentiment but I'm not sure it's one to put into practice, if having the words would serve you.
Can you not share any of this conversation with my family?
Morgoth thought I was naive.
purposeful_glory
Consider it stricken. I'll go back and edit the notes when I can look at them instead of adding to them under my feathers.
It would upset them pointlessly and also some of them would feel a burning need to go learn what it was they didn't know, if not from me than from some other survivor. And I need them to think that I, aside from being in a position of disbelieving they exist, am entirely fine.
No, that's fine. Being bitter or reserved is acceptable, I'm not going to be able to exude warmth and delight at life at them. At everyone else, maybe, but not at anyone who sees me that frequently. Just - not trapped most of the time inside my own head wrestling with things they don't even have words for, that wouldn't do at all.
And they'd merrily set to inventing some and I love my family but I don't actually want their obsessive delight for problems and problem-solving turned on putting me back together. I don't think there are enough pieces left and I cannot let something that's probably the Enemy decide how I ought to be shaped anyway.
Did you know that when I sleep, if we're within a couple hundred miles of Angband, I can hear Thauron, and he asks me every time if I want to wake up for real, in Angband? I'm not sure if it's osanwë or my own subconscious.
Did you know that when I sleep, if we're within a couple hundred miles of Angband, I can hear Thauron, and he asks me every time if I want to wake up for real, in Angband? I'm not sure if it's osanwë or my own subconscious.
purposeful_glory
Eugh. Well. The Dwarves are far away from Angband, so if it's distance limited you should be okay there.
If it bothered me I'd have asked for a meeting place farther away. I actually find it a little bit grounding.
I've said no, obviously. A few times I was tempted, just because I don't think after I wake up from this one you'll - ah, my Enemy will - ever be able to convince me another one is real, and so this particular genre of game would be over. But this is nice and I haven't even explored it all and there are so many things happening, I don't really want it taken away just yet.
purposeful_glory
Alas, I can't take the credit for the scenery or for more than, oh, eighty percent of the things happening.
Laughter. You don't need to redact the things I said earlier from Findekáno, I'm not sure he should read them and they might make him sad but he is unlikely to set himself at once to inventing the cure, and it'll help him understand why he shouldn't talk to me at night and we shouldn't meet. Which he deserves to know. Also he might at last feel sufficiently sorry for me to accept my apology for the boats and for making him promises I couldn't keep.
purposeful_glory
If you say so. Can we go back to designing my Helcaraxë in sufficient detail to play with it?
But of course! How many frost giants are there? Are they in cities?
purposeful_glory
Good question! Let's say yes to cities. Is a million a good number? I think a million's a good number if I go with the 'magical sustenance' model. Alternately, I can assume a supply line of mystery frost giant food from Jötunheim for you to undoubtedly sabotage.
And there ensues a lot of society design which is tremendous fun.
And there ensues a lot of society design which is tremendous fun.
Flying with magic assistance all day and all night, it is actually not very far to Tumunzahar.
purposeful_glory
Which interrupts the society design, but it was almost wrapped up anyway. Loki takes a moment to make sure all her transcribed-and-not-read notes are where they should be in her illusion notebook, and then knocks.
The Dwarf at the door isn't familiar, but was at her lecture and will tell them to light everything up for Loki, returning with her Elf.
purposeful_glory
"It's a small thing," she says, "but the trick I have for making orcs stop working for Morgoth involves, of all things, convincing them that on this continent members of his species are called 'Quendi' and not 'Elves'. It hardly matters amongst yourselves but if any of you are likely to be in earshot of any orcs I'd appreciate the vocabulary swap."
They all express firm intentions to keep out of earshot of orcs but will be careful if they ever are. Maitimo's frowning. "You're not speaking the same language to them as they're speaking back, and I can understand you but wouldn't expect them to actually understand Quenya."