riverview | 4 [@necromantica: video]

Okay, you'll all have to forgive me for bringing up necromancy again.. I know some people really dislike hearing about it.

[She clears her throat nervously, trying to decide how to word this delicately. You know, for the people who hate necromancers or are afraid of the dead. But... Letha's never been the best with tact.]

I've heard through word of mouth from locals and... Walter... that some manner of people were living outside of the wall, and have since been mysteriously killed off. While I'd like to investigate and I'm... particularly equipped to speak to the dead, I don't trust myself to stay safe on the way there. Particularly considering that my only current forms of protection are a risen and a baby pokemon.

Aside from some proper protection, I'd like to see if anyone has... well, I believe investigative experience would be prudent. Those who were coppers in your home worlds or... at least have solved mysteries before, I'm not picky. It would be nice to have another necromancer around to divide the work of interviewing corpses, but I doubt I'll get that blessing.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[She can't judge Li for having trouble... she's lucky to be such a quick learner when it comes to these things. She just gives the other girl a bright smile while waiting patiently for her to readjust the camera.]

Yes... I was trained since I was very little - I can speak to them and walk among them, as well as animate them so they may walk among the living. Though... if they're moving about they can't speak, and that can make them a bit boring.

[She's sort of hoping Li isn't grossed out... she's not the best at parsing if someone means to berate her about abusing her power.]

[ Alright, she has almost got this thing in focus. Sort of. The majority of her face is in the picture. It's a little too close now, but she's backing it out a bit. She's learning! It's just taking a minute. ]

You can visit Tír nAill? I've never heard of anyone being able to do that who wasn't confined to that realm afterward. "Death keeps the dead," or so the saying goes.

[ Grossed out? Hardly. She's actually a bit awestruck and fascinated for Letha's presentation. It's far kinder than when she thought Sans, a living skeleton, was a malevolent spirit that had somehow reclaimed his physical form and was set to -- well, she's not really sure what she thought he was set to do, only that he was terrifying while she thought as much of him. It's the idea of animating them that gives her some pause, but her curiosity is stoked. ]

My people have always endeavored not to disturb the ancestors unnecessarily, that nothing good could come of it. Does it bother them, that you animate them?

Not exactly... it seems I can only visit the dead of the world I'm in at any particular time. Before I could only see those who died in my own world, and here I can only see those who died in this world. [She wrinkles her nose.] Although... it's the most curious thing, I've noticed that every dead person I've met was born here as well. I've begun to wonder if dying may be a probable way to go back home... although I doubt anyone would be willing to try it out for me.

[Were it anyone else, the talk of killing someone might be worrisome, but with Letha it's simply a passing thought that she shrugs off. Killing people is rude and difficult, which are the main reasons her clan abstains from it - not to mention the dead could come back and get them in trouble.]

Oh, we don't use such magic on our own family members. That would be inconsiderate. We use servants who have died in service to us, and we usually clean off their flesh first for modesty. I personally think it's best to ask permission as well before hand, but with servants it isn't entirely necessary. [And sometimes she forgets.]

[ Death is among the next great adventures as far as Lí is concerned, so Letha's speaking in that way doesn't really phase her. It doesn't make much sense to be afraid of it in her mind. It's an inevitability. Being afraid of it would only make it harder to live in the now and she is all about living life to the fullest. ]

I doubt they would. I imagine anyone who intends to return to their world would want to return intact. If the dead here are only the dead of this world, then... perhaps you are right and every world has its own Tír nAill that calls them to rest. Through the portal, perhaps?

[ That's her best guess. That's how everyone arrives and everyone presumably leaves. She really should go take a listen at that thing at some point. ]

That sounds respectful, I think. I can't imagine anything terrible happening if it's your servants. That is quite a lengthy term of service, though. To serve even after death...

I would think so, yes. The afterlife is much more complex than I thought before I came here, and I wouldn't be surprised if the souls of the fallen have a pull to bring them back where they belong.

[Which... now that she thinks of it, sort of gives her a good reason not to die. She'd hate to be stuck back in her world's afterlife... though she doesn't know what would happen to her if she came back as a properly dead soul.]

Back in Thornwell our servants are buried in shallow graves once they die, so they can be used as teaching mechanisms for children, or animated to serve us when the living are busy or sleeping. They have no way of knowing how their body is used unless someone tells them, so I suppose it can also be used for modesty if one is trying to avoid the servants' gossip. Although... since I have no servants here I've been making use of a corpse I rescued from the jungle, and I've received a few complaints about it.

Animals don't disturb the graves?

[ Make it shallow enough and one's sure to find bones everywhere is her initial thought. ]

I can see how having a corpse around could be upsetting if you aren't accustomed to it. I myself am not, so I could not tell you how comfortable I would be until we came to it. I would think the issue lies in how people regard their dead and how they perceive what it is you do. If you have his permission and are respectful of your companions' space, I... am not entirely sure there's an issue to broach. Why complain about it?

[ If there's no abuse of power and everyone is properly respected... ]

Sometimes they do... but we try to avoid that. If we lose too many important bones for a servant they tend to be allowed to retire.

[Mostly because when a skeleton is missing a leg it's annoying to move.]

I can't say I know exactly what the problem is... I'm so accustomed to the dead that I find it hard to see what others are so worried about. There are dangers involved, but I've trained for years and never had a problem, and no one gets hurt. Corpses don't even smell that much.

[Or.. normally they don't. She didn't do a great job of cleaning her pet corpse, so he smells... horrible.]

It sounds like they could be rather troublesome in terms of upkeep.

[ At least that's how it sounds. ]

I would say to give them time and try to educate them when you can. You may not gain total acceptance of your art, but that really is the best you can do beyond being a safe and responsible practitioner. Just as you are accustomed to the dead and your magicks, there are those out there who simply are not or who may have had bad experiences with those who practice similar magicks or... well, who simply regard the dead as so sacred as to not disturb them at all. You can only control what you do in setting your personal precedent. That is your power, Letha.

[ And she can't quite help the mutter that follows: ]

Much as it baffles me that there could be worlds without magick at all...

4 [@necromantica: video]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject