And then another woman, looking melancholy, walks through the door.

She pauses when she enters, seeming confused, glancing around.

She looks up. 

Aside from the bar, this is the first other person she's seen here, and the first person she's seen from another world. 

No neuropotential, not even a wisp or a remnant. Nor a rechanneling. Otherwise she reads in fact like the familiar sort of person. Not connected into anything, not under influence. (Not anything like a representative sample, one person - of anything let alone of everything. But it is information.)

"This is an interdimensional bar appropriating doors from other locations," she says out loud. "Sells non-magical objects and food; lends books. Stops time at your origin."

"You know I'm here?"

She can easily think of circumstances that would lead to someone being surprised by this. Cannot so easily think of circumstances that would lead to the question making sense to ask, but given how much variety in worlds there appears to be, this is quite likely to be a failure of her imagination.

Or the entrant could just be expressing the surprise.

"Yes. You walked in" - she gives the span of time - "ago". You're standing near the door. You're -" she describes the entrant's appearance as she sees it.

" - People usually can't remember anything about me, not for very long."

"...I'm not certain if the location would protect against that. You could ask.

If I create a record or reminder on my device, would that cause me to forget it exists, or cause other side effects?"

"Wouldn't make you forget your device. People can usually - guess that I exist - if they leave themselves reminders, but they forget again pretty soon after they stop interacting with the reminder."

She makes a record, both for herself and in her auxiliary report. Starts setting a regular reminder. (Neither of these operations involve actions externally visible to eyesight.)

"How soon?"

"Usually in the minutes range, sometimes seconds if someone's base memory is poor."

She calibrates the relevant settings of the reminder accordingly. 

"Can others who don't see you be told of your existence?"

"They'll forget me, too, but... Maybe it's just my world, since you're interacting with me just fine."

"I'd suggest stepping into mine to attempt to disambiguate between that possibility as opposed to this location protecting against it, but exiting to my world is currently prevented. I'm told that shouldn't last overly long.

We don't have the phenomenon in my origin; is it common in yours?"

"People can delete things from existence - the process is really complicated though, so most don't - and deleting things makes you progressively harder to remember. I've used the deletion magic a lot, way more than normal."

"Is it known what causes that?" She's been attempting to read about some various worlds and their apparent assorted phenomena and what their inhabitants know about them. (A few, which is a very, very small fraction, it seems. Not exactly an ideal method for an overview. But if materials exist with more overview and less localizedness, they don't seem to currently be offered here.)

"Resonance, probably, since when you delete something you make the world like it never existed - so people have trouble remembering you ever existed."

...That would be different - and rather more powerful - than deletion (which is quite considerably powerful itself). "It changes events retroactively?" and, "Can the resonance and its source be detected by something other than its effects, or is it construed from them?"

"Yeah to the first, though big changes that impact a lot of people are super hard. You gotta guess right what the world looks like without it, for one. And deleted things are shuffled into the Forgotten World, so you can find them there."

"The Forgotten World?" and, "What takes place with people who would have died or never existed in the previous version, but would be alive or exist given the deletion?" and, "If you were to delete something, and then another user deleted you, would your deletion be returned?"

"It's a parallel world. I don't know if other worlds have the same thing, but it's pretty hard to access - and important to rituals for deleting things."

"And, yeah, you can change who's alive or who exists with deleting, and that's part of why it's hard to do stuff in the past - you need to account for all the people who would or wouldn't be born if you did something."

"And deleting me would undo my deletions, but the fact I've deleted stuff makes me really hard to delete, because no one can remember what I did with my life or the impacts I've had, so you can't describe the world without me accurately enough."

"What is it like as a world? Is living there different from living in your general world? Do those people sent their retain previous memories?

Would deleting things be a protection from being deleted, then?"

She rubs at her forehead. "One question at a time, maybe."

"Ah, apologies." She looks to one of the other tables. "Would you like to sit down? The bar provides one free drink."

"Sure. Sounds good to me."

She moves to sit down at a table within viewing distance of her previous one, and waits to see if the entrant will go to the bar or sit also. 

Heads to the bar, gets something, then heads over to her table to sprawl across from her.

"Do you have interest in a description of my world as well?" she asks when the other has returned.

"Sure."

She's done some reading on different worlds and has some amount of a guess of which things to focus on as needing explanation.

"People of my world are generally born with different quantities of a quality we call neur-potential. It allows for mind control of other people, and also of computers, though somewhat differently.

- Does your world have computer technology?"

"Yeah. Have for I guess half a century."

Then she won't stop to explain it.

"As I think is fairly apparent, the ability has a very high potential for misuse, with a variety of severe consequences. The founders of our society fled their own society - possibly world - of origin, and avoiding this was among their central priorities. We control no one against their will; we expose no one to control who would not wish to be, we permit no misuse in individual basis."  

"How is that enforced?"

"Varies with setting - we have a variety, people come in different sorts. I'm from a city with a background flow and the protections are incorporated. In some settings there's surveillance, in some the option to use neur-potential on others is adjusted to be unavailable. A few others.

"Setting?"

She notes this as information about the local translation.

"Those born in our world have a variety of often quite significant preferences with respect to the use of neur-potential on or around them. I don't prefer to be subject to it myself, but the city I live in has a background flow and I find that acceptable - and convenient. Many of course like to be more tied in. Some others prefer not to be around a background flow, or too many people tied into one. Some don't prefer the flow but appreciate the potential for occasionally receiving commands if they desire them. Some prefer to be around no uses at all. 

A given location in our world is generally set up in one of several ways, each of which is suited to some of these preferences and not others. We have some language to refer to this; I suppose it's only to be expected the relevant lexical items would not be needed elsewhere."

"Background flow?"

She'd obtained materials on some other worlds with forms of mind control, earlier, noted some differences in characteristics.  

"In controlling computers, neur-potential can simply be used to produce actions; in people its use tends to involve mindstate change. A mindstate change doesn't require immediate commands attached - can cause the state and leave it for later, so to speak. With enough neur-potential and knowing what to do with it, you can make a background flow - generally mindstate-oriented, people can vary their connection to it, vary their absorption - or have it varied for them."

"So if you have a background flow that makes you feel relaxed, you'll feel more relaxed if you're connected to it?"

"Yes. And more relaxed if more connected, generally."

"Can it control actions, or just mind states?"

"Can work in either manner. Though a basics level background flow isn't particularly ideal for actions unless you need everyone performing the same one. Ours is more personalized - and more complicated, this is some of what takes approximately the most work.

We have the flow, but we - you could say bounce it around more, tie more into it. Split it up more, identify to it." She taps her pendant. "Directions to some unit can go out to them and not everyone in the city, and the Acentered don't get all the Leader feelings they're not at all interested in, and if someone needs conflict help or whatever other thing they're the ones who get it."

"Who's 'we'?"

"My society of origin.

Not generally myself personally, I'm a researcher. Primarily."

"Who're the Acentered, then?"

"Some people who like being tied in more like having a Leader to focus on; some don't. Acentered are the second of those; they'll think 'serving the city' and not 'serving the Leader' and such. Generally not different from each other otherwise." 

"So Leaders do - what?"

A motion of sorts. "Leadership. 

I don't imagine it's that different from the sort of thing whoever is in charge do in other sorts of societies.

Once the door allows me to leave again I'll be passing her a message about this place - it's important enough for that, obviously; she'll coordinate making decisions and doing what should be done about it."

"Why would people focus on a leader then? I'm not used to most people much liking their politicians."

"That sounds rather more unpleasant but perhaps it's likely to happen if they're less selected." 

Shrug. "I haven't questioned anyone in detail. They prefer it as a focus? The Leader watches over them and it all runs and they serve the Leader.

As I'm given to understand it some people prefer a single partner in their personal life; perhaps it can be considered similar to that."

"Most people don't serve their partner all that much, either."

A slight laugh. "We do have some with that particular preference but it's not especially common, no. 

The comparison was the single focused interest, not the service. Most people who wish to be tied into or absorbed in the flow go for the serving frame. Not all, but that's not overly relevant to Leadered as opposed to Acentered; the distributions differ there but it's just proportions."

"I guess that makes sense."

"Someone will likely want to study the distribution of psychological tendencies in other populations, observe if they differ from ours - I suspect they may."

She checks her tablet, briefly.

"Not really my field."

"What is your field?"

"Don't super have one. I've always been a bit of a drifter."

What is her world like in greater generality?

"Don't know how to summarize that. Full of people. They're people."

From the reading she's done she can form and select from some more specific questions. And will, as asked, use one at a time.

Is it all united and governed together, or are there multiple polities?

"Lots of different polities. Hundreds, I think, over the one planet."

What tends to distinguish them?

"How people get into power, how they're removed from power, who can get power, term limits, and then stuff like economic policies and how much liberty they give people, I guess."

Is this a case where different people prefer different circumstances and so many circumstances are available, or something else? (she's read about and is aware of the concept of multiple polities for historical reasons).

"We don't have open borders like that. Most people live where they were born."

Did she?

"I traveled more than typical."

More ability to, or just more interest?

"Both."

"Which abilities?"

"Money. Lack of a job or family tying me down."

How did she acquire money? (Her own society does not do money in the way she has the impression some others do. She has some historical stories and some information from reading, but she's interested in a little more, and what a person could provide.)

"I had skills most don't, and would take risks most wouldn't, in a field with a high payout potential."

"Can deleting services be sold, or was this a different field and set of skills?"

"Some people sell deletions, yes. I did that only rarely - my main field lay elsewhere."

"Oh?"

She glances at the ceiling, then shrugs. "I was a hitman for a while."

She has the concept from what exists of descriptions of the empires their ancestors fled (and stories and simulations, but those are more likely to be inaccurate to a reality). She considers.

While some might obviously think better of someone who had not taken such a job, if one's world has the dynamics that lead to such jobs existing, it does seem likely that someone will occupy them. And those are not likely to be the people at the level of power of driving those dynamics.

If she was currently in the other world attempting some intervention, the best course of action might in some cases involve making this interaction hostile; at the moment this does not seem likely to be the case.

She nods.

"That is not considered a job? Or just not one that would tie you down? Is it one one retires from - I notice you said 'was'."

"Doesn't tie me down, yeah. Flexible hours and all that. Got hard to keep going when my clients couldn't remember I existed long enough to pay me."

Nod.

"How long ago was that, if I might ask?"

"A few decades. I'm not so good at exact times, though." She doesn't look old enough - for a normal human - to have been an assassin a few decades ago.

"How long do people in your world live?"

"If something doesn't get them first, usually seven to nine decades. Some people get to ten, though."

That sounds fairly close to what hers had before the work that has so far been successful on it.

"How old are you yourself?"

"Hard to say."

"Oh? Would it be outside the usual range?"

"Yup - you can also make the world forget concepts, like an individual's death or age."

...that is a new dimension in what she knows of this power's capabilities, and a significant one.

"My. Is that particularly costly? Is there a reason it is not commonly done?"

"It's costly and most people don't know how."

"Costly in the sense you earlier mentioned, or are there additional costs?

For what reasons is the knowledge not more widely spread?"

"In the sense I mentioned earlier, and it makes using the magic at all later risky. And most magical knowledge isn't widely spread, and if you get forgotten about it's harder for your innovations to get spread, too."

Ah, that last would be an interesting effect of their system.

"Risky?"

"Your death ends up dwelling in the Forgotten World. Which you have to go into, in order to move things between realms."

"What does that entail? Does it become a physical entity? Does it attempt pursuit?"

"It isn't really physical, but it does need to search for and find you. Haven't gotten caught by mine, yet."

She's still generally interested to know further what the Forgotten World is like, and if it resembles a more regular world or is entirely different.

"Quite extremely different. It's - fragmented, kind of dream-like."

"Oh?" (Dreams are a subject of some amount of interest in her world; various people study them.)

"The things shoved over usually have some amount of land around them, but it's - hard to focus on, wavery, and easy to forget the exact shape of. But forgotten things aren't all coherent, or capable of existing together, so - it's kind of like they're on islands with paths between them, but some of those paths are just thoughts."

"Is it possible to live there in a longer term? Or does the deletion of a person generally kill them?"

"Some people do live there, yeah."

"Some?"

"It's not very hospitable. People don't die immediately, especially if they know how foraging works, but - there's not much food or water."

"Do they themselves retain their previous memories?"

"Generally, yes."

"Is it possible to have children there?"

"Haven't heard of that happening."

"Does it cause miscarriage in those already pregnant, then?"

"Not actually sure on that."

Nod.

She checks her tablet again.

"...Did the invention of computer technology make deletion more difficult due to the greater records, or is that simple to take care of?"

"Records get rewritten too, just the same - you're changing history. It's harder with higher populations and more inter-connectivity, though, because you have to keep track of more that could change."

"I was more referring to how much of the detail work of the records changes you need to keep in your own mind."

"Ah, far as I know none - they change on their own once you change the base event."

"Interesting. Are there other aspects of changes that is the case for?"

"There's a lot of detail work that gets filled in. Specific conversations, memories, any small changes."

"Interesting. And what doesn't get filled in and one has to handle one's self is -?"

"The main important thing is what you, personally, would remember to be different - though it's recommended you learn as much as possible about what could change so you have more control over the result."

"Oh?"

Shrug. "Most people don't want to make basically random changes to the world, and the more you leave up to the magic the harder it is to pull off, anyways. Also if all you've done is read a history book and you're trying to change that, the magic's more likely to make the historians wrong or the book contain typos than to change the original event."

"Ah, I see." That answers her question with respect to control as well. "Are there other such patterns in what the magic tends to do if left somewhat to its own devices, so to speak?"

"Not that I've noticed."

She imagines the nature of deletion might make it difficult to put together anything like comprehensive data on instances of its use and how they took place, would that be correct? 

"Exactly, yeah."

...If you got to the Forgotten World and return, do objects you are carrying at the time travel there and back with you?

"Yeah, though I'm not sure they - or you - get Forgotten while you're over. Though it'd be hard to test that, since the world would revert when you came back even if it did change."

Ah, interesting. She wonders if forgetting extends to other worlds, like this one or her own. If it doesn't, that would have some potential. 

While one is in the Forgotten World, is it possible to note what else is there and then keep that knowledge when returned?

"You can, but there's not usually much near where you cross over."

She wonders if it might be possible to have a computer catalog some things then, and retain the catalog upon return.

If the person who remembers attempts to tell other people of what the previous state of affairs was, how do they tend to react?

"Possibly, to the first. And to the second - generally like how you'd expect people to react if you started insisting the world had been rewritten at some point in the past? There's not some magically enforced masquerade, it's just far-fetched and sounds like a quack theory."

What she'd expect is actually somewhat different than what her interlocutor is pointing at, but she can figure out what the latter is. "And if they're aware of deletion as a phenomenon?"

"They can get details about the deleted world from you, yeah."

"I've been curious about neur-potential functioning with respect to your world; I don't suppose you have a computer or other device you wouldn't mind if I conducted a test on? And if not, if I conducted a test using mine, with you as an information source?"

"I have a tablet computer you can use."

"Thank you. I've started some experiments," she gestures at her table, "but the Bar doesn't sell magical items, and it might not be the same if someone brought it in personally. And of course I didn't have anyone to consult with." Would the other be willing to provide a brief introduction to the tablet? 

"Tablet's not magical, but, sure."

She provides an explanation of how to use the tablet, though she doesn't know how it works. It's fairly simple as far as computers go (in her opinion), since she mostly just uses it for reading and sketching. It's a touch screen, though a stylus also works.

"But it's possible it may have been affected by magic, or somehow influenced by its background presence."

She is thanked.

If the tablet has some program that can be used to enter text and then display it, she'll use that one; otherwise an empty sketching page will do. Then - she would like this tablet to tell her how many fingers she has (a simple test, to begin with). (There's considerably more to the process than issuing the command; she goes about the process. This will look, externally, like her spending an amount of time concentrating and not doing anything.)

That works.

"At least a basic test works as I would expect," she lets the other know. "I could attempt some more elaborate testing, or I could attempt a test at using information sourced from your world, if you're willing?"

"I am."

"Thank you.

If it doesn't work I won't be able to be sure for the moment whether it's affected by the forgetting or something more general, but it won't be uninformative completely. Though less informative than if it does." And she would like the tablet to tell her how many fingers her interlocutor has.

It has no idea she has an interlocutor and is really confused by this question.

Interesting. She relays this as well. 

She'd like to try the same thing on a tablet from her world to narrow down the variables involved, if her interlocutor doesn't mind?

"I don't."

She heads over to Bar, returns with a purchased fresh tablet of the sort local to her. (She'd prefer to source one from her world more clearly, but that being unavailable this seems the best of options). 

Same question.

It's similarly confused.

That is unexpected. She isn't having any such trouble, hasn't needed the reminder she set. 

Does her interlocutor have any hypothesis? Also, would it be dangerous to repeat the test with the tablet that she carried in originally, to test the case the buying from Bar was the relevant variable?

"Dunno. Usually neither people nor machines notice I'm there. Does Milliways alter effects that impact people a lot?"

Interesting question. She'll ask it. 

You're generally not allowed to attack other people in the main room, and sometimes constant active but potentially hostile effects do get suppressed.

That sounds like a possible explanation, then. Is it possible to temporarily unsuppress them?

Bar is unsure, and wouldn't know how besides.

Hm. She isn't certain how to pursue this line of inquiry further, for all that she is very much interested in doing so.

She relays the response.

"The next obvious test would be to see what might happen if I step into your world, but I think that's overmuch risk as long as I don't have my door yet." She's still uncertain about testing with her original tablet. Does her interlocutor think there would be side-effects on it if she were to attempt this?

"Probably would be."

Of what sort?

"Not sure, but - I don't know if the magic system will react well to you. You might forget everything to do with me, including why you're in my world, or you might cause problems if you walk around remembering I exist, since that might reverse all the deletions I've made."

Ah, no, she was meaning to ask about side-effects on her original tablet if she attempts to run the same test with it. She is quite sure stepping personally into the other world is too risky, even if she might not have thought of those possibilities in detail in particular.

"I wouldn't think it'd change your tablet at all?"

She considers this further. Decides to hold off on the experiment, for the time being. She doesn't currently have a very reliable detection for any effects that might occur, regardless of results, and if there's some chance that that will change, more preferable to wait for it. And if her tablet being brought by her personally does result in significant properties, and those properties might be negatively affected, more preferable to retain them for now. Future potential is rather wide, here.

The next experiment to attempt is fairly obvious, but unfortunately less straightforward to make inquiries about. 

"I have been additionally curious about neur-potential function with respect to your world in its interpersonal rather than technological capacity. 

I'm aware many people would not wish to be a subject for this, even for with a minor and harmless test, and would not try anything without permission."

"What would your test be?"