[ he's floating isn't he. also points at him. soft spot
anyway ]
Haha... I'm fine, I'm fine. I just didn't expect it... [ he will pull himself back up, at least, holding a book in his arms. ] Libraries have been awfully cruel to me as of late.
But! This place is really wonderful - I feel like I could spend years in here and never run out of things to read.
anyway he most certainly can look! it appears to be in the funky rune alphabet of orsterra. i guess war has npc powers so he can probably see that the title of it is From The Far Reaches of Hell. ]
Mhm! I can't wait to tell Miss Kate. I promised her I'd try to find her a library, and we finally found one! They even have rare books from my homeland.
This place reminds me a lot of Orsterra. Not just the library, but... all of it. It's the first time I've felt even a little at home since we got here.
[ somehow, they knew this would get a labrador reaction. ]
It is our capital city, Rosohna. Arcanists have created for us a sunless, perpetual night sky much like the other area. Since a majority of us are drow, as you saw with my brother.
Our race comes from deep underground, so our eyes - and our skin sometimes - are sensitive to sunlight.
which means of course rondo is listening very attentively, and he nods in remembrance. purble... ]
I remember your parasol. [ from the island! sunny. his eyes drift to the nearest window, peering up like he could see the stars. ] It must be really beautiful there.... though, I think I'd probably miss the sun, haha. Flamesgrace is dark enough for me...
[ then again, he's not a drow. also something something walking sunlight. ]
Did the sky they made have stars like this one does?
[ begging rondo to obtain better standards. begging. ]
Yes, it does. It looks exactly like an eternal night sky. [ funny the brackets should say this. ] A bit ironic considering most of my people believe in the Luxon.
The Lord of Light and the First Radiance.
Every so often there is a sort of... worship period where the night is dispelled and those who follow the faith of the Luxon pray and seek the sun.
[ looks at the audience i just started with famine. he will not.
anyway. ah... familiar.... ]
The lord of light, huh? Sounds a lot like Aelfric. [ rondo as a certified light and radiance guy loves him some aelfric, but: ] But... you don't, right? You're against it.
Mm, no. I do not despise it, nor do I hate those who follow it. [ they stare off thoughtfully. ] I simply feel... religion is a bit of a crutch people lean on when they don't have the nerve to dig a little deeper for the truth they're seeking. A blanket to comfort them when they can't explain good or bad phenomenon, when they are at a loss to believe in themselves.
I suppose I sound like quite the heretic to you. Well, no matter, I do to my own people, too.
[ there's a tiny huff of a laugh - he doesn't mean anything by it. somewhere temenos mistral is feeling validated. ] But - only a little. That's okay. I think, as long as you don't run around and tell people that they're dumb for it or try to force them to stop then... it really shouldn't matter, right? And... your people should let you believe what you believe, too. It works both ways.
[ rondo's gaze tracks away as he talks, recalling. ]
I think my experience with this kind of stuff is a little different than most people's, anyway. When I got my Flame, it was because I was facing a trial set forth for me by Aelfric - he was speaking with us the entire time. It did end up being... you said a crutch, but... it ended up being something that forced me to believe in myself, but it was much more literal.
So...I get what you mean, I think. I always felt like I relied too much on other people to be strong, and it took that trial for me to learn that I needed to try to be strong for myself. [ and, turning back to look up...eye level...? at him, he smiles. ] In the end, what matters is that we keep our eyes open, and we face truth as bravely as we can. Right?
[ throws temenos outta here even though they would get along in clown to clown communication. ]
I think our odds are I am interested in making a study of religious relics belonging to my people. They are sacred, and so, those of the faith dislike the tampering.
[ they glance at rondo. ]
...You truly do remind me of Verin. Unfortunately, I have come to realize here... that... my ambitions have perhaps caused something very dire for my world. In my effort to tear away the curtains of faith covering my people's eyes, I have... doomed them possibly to... both war and... something more dangerous.
[ war admitting they did something wrong. i'm deeply, deeply deeply proud.
rondo, empathetic and attentive as always, frowns at that idea (though he looks slightly happy at first at being compared to war's Super Cool brother again, it does not last)- his brows knit together in worry, mouth softening into a little oh. ]
...Oh no... [ yikes ] That's... did that happen right before you came here...? Is there any way to stop it?
No. Actually, I have... only just begun my plan not long ago. Someone here... made me realize that in the pursuit of my ambitions, I chose apathy despite being able to consider what consequences may occur.
All that mattered to me was finding the truth and depth of our magic I know is held within our religious relics.
ah... it feels a little familiar, but maybe only in wishful thinking. rondo looks down at his hands, thinking it over. a plan already in motion, and a person recognizing they might have taken something too far. ]
So... I guess then the question is... what happens next?
[ ... huh. well. time magic is way out of rondo's purview - it probably has laws he could never come to understand, but he thinks about it, for a long moment, glancing over at them. ]
... Would it...end up undoing everything that's happened since...?
[ it's okay.... never get involved with the details of time shenanigans, sweet baby. ]
That sort of magic depends on what is out there for me to learn and find. I just meant... I am now standing between two diverging timelines, and the choices I make going forward can send me down a similar path, or a different one altogether.
[ that makes a little bit more sense. he thinks about alfyn - from the future, three years present. there's no guarantee that his future is rondo's future, really, is there? he never did ask him who the flameguard was.
but there's no time to think about that, not right now. his brows knit together, and after a moment... ]
... Would it help to talk it through...? What you might do.
[ the offer is genuine, because... of course it is. there's not much rondo can do to help besides be a listening ear, but of course, of course he wants to. it feels a little childish of an offer, in the face of great decisions of time and magic and timeline divergence, but... if it's all he can offer to someone who has been so kind and thoughtful to him, then without a moment's hesitation he offers. ]
Or... if there's anything else I can do to help...
[ war will lead rondo out of the library and murder him secretly in cold blood (no).
they traverse the somehow short distance to the starry city of Roth by way of tree and magical bullshit. the idea i have to skip this to keep the thread from being 500 comments but also acknowledge they wouldn't have walked in total silence.
war seems to like it higher up, closer to the burning orbs, so they climb through the city a little ways until they can stand on a wide patio overlooking everything. ]
[ how will he murder camille in cold blood if war kills him on monday cmon
anyway yes. they had a nice and companionable conversation on the way up and it was great. rondo's relaxed and curious as he follows war, head craning to look at their surroundings. by the time they're up to the big patio, he makes a little noise of awe and surprise, putting one hand on his forehead as if he could see further into the ruins below under the starlight. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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anyway ]
Haha... I'm fine, I'm fine. I just didn't expect it... [ he will pull himself back up, at least, holding a book in his arms. ] Libraries have been awfully cruel to me as of late.
But! This place is really wonderful - I feel like I could spend years in here and never run out of things to read.
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SLAPS THE HAND AWAY ]
I imagine there are a few of you we won't be able to get out of here really.
[ ...
being nosy and looking at this book he has... ]
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anyway he most certainly can look! it appears to be in the funky rune alphabet of orsterra. i guess war has npc powers so he can probably see that the title of it is From The Far Reaches of Hell. ]
Mhm! I can't wait to tell Miss Kate. I promised her I'd try to find her a library, and we finally found one! They even have rare books from my homeland.
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excuse me, it's called what? HELLO? ok. rondo? about to snatch that outta his little paladin hands. ]
You may not even need to tell her. I saw her wandering around in here earlier. You will probably run into her.
[ somehow, they cannot because of pc magic, but it's fine. ]
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Good, good. I might not ever leave. [ hehe. ]
This place reminds me a lot of Orsterra. Not just the library, but... all of it. It's the first time I've felt even a little at home since we got here.
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Yes, this place reminds me of Exandria in a way. Of Wildemount. [ hmmm. ] The other area with the lights - it reminds me of my home.
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Would you tell me about it? Your home.
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It is our capital city, Rosohna. Arcanists have created for us a sunless, perpetual night sky much like the other area. Since a majority of us are drow, as you saw with my brother.
Our race comes from deep underground, so our eyes - and our skin sometimes - are sensitive to sunlight.
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which means of course rondo is listening very attentively, and he nods in remembrance. purble... ]
I remember your parasol. [ from the island! sunny. his eyes drift to the nearest window, peering up like he could see the stars. ] It must be really beautiful there.... though, I think I'd probably miss the sun, haha. Flamesgrace is dark enough for me...
[ then again, he's not a drow. also something something walking sunlight. ]
Did the sky they made have stars like this one does?
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Yes, it does. It looks exactly like an eternal night sky. [ funny the brackets should say this. ] A bit ironic considering most of my people believe in the Luxon.
The Lord of Light and the First Radiance.
Every so often there is a sort of... worship period where the night is dispelled and those who follow the faith of the Luxon pray and seek the sun.
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anyway. ah... familiar.... ]
The lord of light, huh? Sounds a lot like Aelfric. [ rondo as a certified light and radiance guy loves him some aelfric, but: ] But... you don't, right? You're against it.
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Mm, no. I do not despise it, nor do I hate those who follow it. [ they stare off thoughtfully. ] I simply feel... religion is a bit of a crutch people lean on when they don't have the nerve to dig a little deeper for the truth they're seeking. A blanket to comfort them when they can't explain good or bad phenomenon, when they are at a loss to believe in themselves.
I suppose I sound like quite the heretic to you. Well, no matter, I do to my own people, too.
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[ there's a tiny huff of a laugh - he doesn't mean anything by it. somewhere temenos mistral is feeling validated. ] But - only a little. That's okay. I think, as long as you don't run around and tell people that they're dumb for it or try to force them to stop then... it really shouldn't matter, right? And... your people should let you believe what you believe, too. It works both ways.
[ rondo's gaze tracks away as he talks, recalling. ]
I think my experience with this kind of stuff is a little different than most people's, anyway. When I got my Flame, it was because I was facing a trial set forth for me by Aelfric - he was speaking with us the entire time. It did end up being... you said a crutch, but... it ended up being something that forced me to believe in myself, but it was much more literal.
So...I get what you mean, I think. I always felt like I relied too much on other people to be strong, and it took that trial for me to learn that I needed to try to be strong for myself. [ and, turning back to look up...eye level...? at him, he smiles. ] In the end, what matters is that we keep our eyes open, and we face truth as bravely as we can. Right?
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I think our odds are I am interested in making a study of religious relics belonging to my people. They are sacred, and so, those of the faith dislike the tampering.
[ they glance at rondo. ]
...You truly do remind me of Verin. Unfortunately, I have come to realize here... that... my ambitions have perhaps caused something very dire for my world. In my effort to tear away the curtains of faith covering my people's eyes, I have... doomed them possibly to... both war and... something more dangerous.
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rondo, empathetic and attentive as always, frowns at that idea (though he looks slightly happy at first at being compared to war's Super Cool brother again, it does not last)- his brows knit together in worry, mouth softening into a little oh. ]
...Oh no... [ yikes ] That's... did that happen right before you came here...? Is there any way to stop it?
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No. Actually, I have... only just begun my plan not long ago. Someone here... made me realize that in the pursuit of my ambitions, I chose apathy despite being able to consider what consequences may occur.
All that mattered to me was finding the truth and depth of our magic I know is held within our religious relics.
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ah... it feels a little familiar, but maybe only in wishful thinking. rondo looks down at his hands, thinking it over. a plan already in motion, and a person recognizing they might have taken something too far. ]
So... I guess then the question is... what happens next?
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Well. [ hesitation. ] I cannot say with true certainty, but it doesn't seem like what happens next is very good.
However... time is my specialty. So perhaps... I could make a change for... the better.
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... Would it...end up undoing everything that's happened since...?
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That sort of magic depends on what is out there for me to learn and find. I just meant... I am now standing between two diverging timelines, and the choices I make going forward can send me down a similar path, or a different one altogether.
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[ that makes a little bit more sense. he thinks about alfyn - from the future, three years present. there's no guarantee that his future is rondo's future, really, is there? he never did ask him who the flameguard was.
but there's no time to think about that, not right now. his brows knit together, and after a moment... ]
... Would it help to talk it through...? What you might do.
[ the offer is genuine, because... of course it is. there's not much rondo can do to help besides be a listening ear, but of course, of course he wants to. it feels a little childish of an offer, in the face of great decisions of time and magic and timeline divergence, but... if it's all he can offer to someone who has been so kind and thoughtful to him, then without a moment's hesitation he offers. ]
Or... if there's anything else I can do to help...
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Come with me.
[ they do not wait before turning around to leave, but they do not think they need to wait on to do really. ]
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yeah predictably he comes trotting right after them! it takes .2 seconds for him to get up and follow. ]
Where are we going?
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[ war will lead rondo out of the library and murder him secretly in cold blood (no).
they traverse the somehow short distance to the starry city of Roth by way of tree and magical bullshit. the idea i have to skip this to keep the thread from being 500 comments but also acknowledge they wouldn't have walked in total silence.
war seems to like it higher up, closer to the burning orbs, so they climb through the city a little ways until they can stand on a wide patio overlooking everything. ]
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anyway yes. they had a nice and companionable conversation on the way up and it was great. rondo's relaxed and curious as he follows war, head craning to look at their surroundings. by the time they're up to the big patio, he makes a little noise of awe and surprise, putting one hand on his forehead as if he could see further into the ruins below under the starlight. ]
... The view up here is breathtaking.
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