tushanshu_logs | EVENT | LANDFALL

EVENT | LANDFALL | VALISHAERA

Characters: ALL!
Date: JULY 13-26
Location: Valishaera
Situation: Tu Vishan has made landfall on Siaxhi, to explore the Dreaming Watch City of Valishaera.
Warnings/Rating: Please indicate content warnings in subject headers as applicable.

As Tu Vishan draws near, the heavy jungle visible even from miles out quickly identifies the landmass as Siaxhi, one of the westernmost continents in Konryu and one that has been largely untouched insofar as the kedan themselves have gone. There is a natural inlet along the southeast shore on the continent and Tu Vishan makes for that, though he fills nearly all of it.

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She supposed it made sense that they had been talking, given the apparent overlap in their interests. Bakura being even that forthcoming was frankly a little startling, but perhaps they'd come to some sort of exchange. Perhaps Bakura simply liked Solomon. "Ah. Hm. I'm less sure now that I'd agree with his analogy, but... later." That was something to query the primary source about, even if she wasn't sure he'd answer.

Raine could recognize an evasion when she heard one, fortunately, and as it had been both polite and not strictly relevant to the lifestream thought, she nodded and moved on. It seemed like it had the potential to take them back to death magic, at any rate, of which there had been more than enough for one day.

"That plane, since it's accessible here, must be connected in some manner similar to the others, and if it's a distinct and separate place, it seems reasonable to presume, in the lack of evidence against the idea, that it is that fourth part." She had calmed into simple thoughtfulness by now, turning the idea over and over. "I had initially thought the separation of our souls was only a backup measure, to keep us from permanent death. Which-- it is that, to an extent, but if your hypothesis is accurate then that illuminates the reason it was necessary. And, perhaps, why it's important that we stay close to them." The last was tacked on as an afterthought. If Eva's magic wasn't as strong as the late Emperor's had been, and they were in a current of souls, the danger of being swept away, so to speak, might be a very real one.

The comment about Bakura seemed to be mostly for herself, but it made Solomon wonder what analogy Bakura had made. Something to do with baa, obviously--but Raine hadn't explained what.

"That was my thought as well," he said. "I don't know how to access it, but I was able to manipulate it when Bakura showed it to me--and while it's possible for people here to learn magic from those not of their world, the khajbit is not magic per se. If it's possible for someone other than Bakura to access the khajbit, that would imply it's a founding plane. A strange one, admittedly; I would have assumed an individual's sheut would be found there, rather than their ka, but it is what it is."

Solomon smiled deprecatingly. He had initially thought the separation of soul was a way to keep the Foreigners under control--and he still felt that was a possibility. But if it was true, then it was Evandau taking advantage of a situation rather than creating the situation for that purpose. Asti, as much as Solomon disliked his soul being elsewhere, was right: returning it would have been a very bad idea.

"The palace may have provided a buffer around the city which enabled us to move at a distance," he said, "but now the palace is taken, we no longer have the benefit of that protection. It makes sense that we would need to remain near to them, under those conditions."

Raine took a few seconds picking through the newly-learned terminology. "A shadow within a plane made of shadows might be easily lost," she offered, a little absently. In the unlikely event that Bakura felt talkative, she would have to query him on this topic, too. "Or, perhaps, the ka as a creature in this case becomes like a shadow cast by the person...? Hm. I wonder why he chose ba as comparison for mana, instead -- vital essence sounds closer, as far as comparisons go, but..."

She fell silent there, thoughts directed inward. Mana was necessary for life as their world knew it, and each and every person had it. It was possible, if ill-advised, to completely exhaust your mana, and the consequence was usually death, but on the one occasion she had seen it occur, the unique self had not gone with it. But in the case of those who had been absorbed by exspheres-- those took both. They must, or speaking to Alicia would have been impossible. Mithos' survival would have been impossible. "I think," she said aloud, slowly, "mana must be closer to ka, as uniqueness and a concept of self is not necessarily attached-- but exspheres likely feed on ba as well, or entrap it as a result." And she shook her head. "But that's beside the point, for now." She'd think on it later. "It's true that the palace has some sort of powerful magic in it, and the results of its corruption speak for themselves. Eva also said she had needed to move them, didn't she? Perhaps that, too, had an effect."

"One would think," said Solomon, "but if you've seen the monsters Bakura has summoned, you may think differently. They are all the kaa, or were in the past, or will be in the future--I'm not sure time exists in the khajbit except when taken into it by duelists. Either way, they're certainly unique themselves."

He leaned forward, gazing up at the foliage overhead and tapping his fingers together. "Of course, from what I recall when I visited the Egyptian Temple, it's when the ka leaves the body that the person dies. But that may be a matter of exchanging cause and effect--the ka leaves the body when the ba dies." He shook his head with a deprecating chuckle. "This is where the cultural conditioning would be useful. Either way, as I understand it, the ba and ka are more closely connected than the other parts of the soul; they can join one another in the afterlife even after death."

Those sorts of complexities were the things Solomon was having trouble with, though he suspected it may not be as simple as an easy one-to-one parallel. The Ancient Egyptians may have been accurate, to some extent, with their view of their universe and its planes; but that didn't mean that all they believed was accurate.

"I would like," Solomon said thoughtfully, "to try and draw parallels between the planes and the features, and the ways in which the parts of the soul are believed to be connected. It's difficult to do so without practical research on the planes themselves."

"I believe I have, once-- though not in any position to examine it in detail. A dragon." It stuck out in her memory, but mostly as dragons in the middle of a fight did, and not with sufficient clarity to distinguish anything important.

It was increasingly clear that she'd have to broach this subject with Bakura at some point, however. "The context would certainly help," she said, only a little resigned. It was not that the idea was particularly unpleasant, but rather that, in her limited experience, a conversation with him had high potential to become frustrating. "The concept itself is clear enough, and I understand the broad idea, but the specifics likely make more sense to someone raised in the tradition."

Even if a direct parallel to things with which she was familiar couldn't be achieved, and she was prepared for that, it would still be nice to have a clear understanding, of this world and of others. "How do you propose to proceed, then?" Raine asked, and, shortly after, "And will you continue to share what you learn?"

"The specifics, in this case, are unfortunately what's important," Solomon said wryly. "But it means I've needed his input, and he has been helpful."

Her second-to-last question was an important one, but it was her last that Solomon answered first. "If you like," he said. "Knowing more about other universes seems wise in any case. But my next step is to take advantage of the opportunity here." He nodded at their surroundings. "I have not been able to study the Dreaming directly before; I don't know details about its characteristics."

"I'd like that, yes," she said. "And if there's anything I can help with, I'm happy to. Though I haven't been here before, either." She rose at that, dusting her pants off absently. "Before this I had heard it was a lucid state, if not always a wholly sensible one. At the very least we've proven it's malleable, which matches what I know of 'normal' lucid dreaming. I do wonder how much it varies depending on the place from which you enter, but that much can't quite be tested right now." All of the questions she'd immediately want answered demanded comparison with other points of Dreaming. Well, there had been multiple arches: there would be time.

"I'll let you know," Solomon said, vaguely amused but thinking of the toll the khajbit and the death-plane took. It was quite possible he'd need Raine's aid, if not interference.

He rose when she did, looking around. "It does imply solidity is possible; this area is obviously sectioned off from the rest of the city. It was probably deliberately created or cordoned off by the monks." Solomon shook his head. "Still, not a question that can be answered here, and I do believe I've had enough of mushrooms for the moment."

While perhaps not quite as adept at interfering as her impetuous students, Raine could definitely provide both interference and aid, as appropriate.

"They do become monotonous after a while," Raine agreed, a little dryly. "A moment, then, and I'll accompany you back the way we came." She hadn't forgotten the idea floated earlier, and she began briefly to cast. White light spun for a few seconds before vanishing, without the usual payout of an arte. Her hands and staff retained the faintest of glows when she was done, and, with a little smile, she started walking back.

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EVENT | LANDFALL | VALISHAERA

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