A Light in the Darkness

[IamLEAM1983]

Lulroth respectfully took one and raised it closer to his face, even as he brought down his spectacles closer to one of the webbed areas - essentially magnifying a small portion of the skin. "Remarkable," he breathed. "More skin between your fingers allows for more control over the displacement of water, whilst submerged, possibly culminating in increased diving prowess - or at least increased water penetration..."

He looked back to Meris and let her hand go. "I would be quite interested in seeing you dive from your most tolerable heights, but this will have to wait for another day, I'm afraid," he said, giving her a good-natured nod and smile. "Shall we?"

Nodding, Nereus turned back and led the small group towards the balcony that led to the isolated beach he'd singled out with Meris. Re-creating the stair-blades of congealed air, he led the group reasonably away from the palace. The cavern easily reverberating sounds, going a ways away from his home would give them as much intimacy as he and Meris had enjoyed.

They returned to the alcove Nereus had carved, Lulroth quickly altering the rock to make for more seating space and Nereus sealing the entryway shut. He then double-checked their available airways and, once satisfied that nobody would suffocate on his watch, willed the crystals he'd conjured into being earlier into generating a soft white light. Everything became clear and most shadows became slightly shaded areas, but the intensity wasn't too much for the tentacled and largely troglodyte creatures.

Once the stone finished settling, Lulroth sighed in obvious relief. "So it is true, then. You are loved, Augur," he said, trading a smile between the Augur and Meris. "I once believed to be alone in this cavern with my Mary, but I recognize some of our shared looks in the both of you."

The Augur looked slightly bashful, the tips of his tentacles and his upper cheeks briefly flushing pink. "There isn't much to say, really. What I'd hoped to be a simple partnership simply happened to turn into so, so much more," he said, briefly squeezing Meris' hand and giving her a tender look. That made Lulroth smile fondly.

"I would have walked here with Mary, but as she is my headmistress, parading her in the streets would have raised questions. "Little Giuseppe here had not left the grounds in over four years; it was high time he learned the lay of the land. Mary, of course, does send her warmest regards, Meris. She was a woman of some letters, you see, and had only read legends regarding your kind. I can safely say that she will use the first opportunity that presents itself in order to bombard you with questions."

[TennyoCeres84]

Her blush fading, Meris smiled warmly. She then chuckled. "I look forward tae meetin' Mary, Lord Lulroth. I ken my people hae a mythic reputation, since we're slightly reclusive and stick mainly tae the coasts. I'll be happy tae answer her questions."

She looked to the youth and heartily shook his hand as a replacement for the earlier one. "I'm pleased tae meet ye as well, Giuseppe. I hae ne'er been tae Italy; it's only been somet'ing I hae seen on maps. I ne'er traveled that far south tae th' Mediterranean."

[IamLEAM1983]

"You would like it," replied the young adult. "At least, I think so. The master does - "

Lulroth held up a hand and briefly lowered his eyes, as if asking for a moment of sobriety. "Please," he said, "my wife called me Lucian. I am no Lord here; I am little else if a fellow conspirator. As for you, lad - I've told you before; a simple Sir will suffice."

Nereus seemed surprised. "She named you?
- Well, of course she did!" replied the older Squid in light astonishment. "You know as well as I do that there's nothing exactly charming about the origin of the phonemes that make up my given name. As my wife called me her light, she soon took to looking for a name that had a certain lambent quality. Lucian stuck."

That made Nereus smile. "In that case, I'd rather you addressed me as Nereus, when behind those walls. If we're to be equals, then the initial protocol has to disappear.
- Well said," agreed Lucian with a nod. "But - tell me, why choose such a portentous name?"

He grinned amusedly. "Nereus, the son of Pontos and Gaia, husband to Doris and father of the Nereiads, he who Hesiod and Pindar praise as being able to mete out justice equally and in absolute fairness... Quite the seductive chimera for whomsoever has aspirations of justice."

The interested party shrugged. "I have a lot to live up to."

Lucian gestured all that away. "Bah. One thing at a time, hm? Let's not get carried away. First, we seat our presence in the city's governance, then we affect a few test changes, and proceed slowly and carefully."

He gave the couple a smirk and a wink. "We might be able to wedge godhood somewhere near the tail end. No promises."

[TennyoCeres84]

Meris lit up as she chuckled. "Lucian, I gave him th' name Nereus because o' its association wi' th' sea an' its larger-than-life correlation tae his large love fer life," she stated, looking to her partner and then to the elderly Void Weaver. "It also relates tae stories I hae told him during our times alone taegether."

She sobered up somewhat. "How shall we start?"

[IamLEAM1983]

Lucian took the big notebook he'd asked Guiseppe to carry and opened it to what was, surprisingly, English script.

"Two phases need to be considered," he explained. "The long-term aspects of our efforts, and what can be done in the immediate. I believe we would proceed more efficiently if we had something resembling a decent road map for the long run. The first order of business, which I'm sure you'll agree with, is putting as many Prelates as possible in touch with how truly miserable one's living conditions are in Dalarath. Morals are currently too deeply inset, Evil as a concept is far too seriously revered for us to hope to change minds immediately. Habits are what must be tackled."

He turned his notebook so Meris could read, then pointed at an itemized list he'd created. "First of all, sanitation measures. Our health is poor and the health of our slaves is abysmal. Cleanliness is looked down upon as it reflects order, and filth is considered a mark of dedication, at least in reasonable amounts. We must make it clear that to live longer is to be able to serve Them longer, and serving Them longer should be considered a mark of pride. To live longer, infection and disease must be fought actively - and on all fronts. We've lived so long with slaves from various species that we Void Weavers have become susceptible to most of the surface world's common illnesses. Currently, our lax sanitation procedures ensure that only the wealthy or religiously mandated are able to repel disease. We breed faster than tuberculosis, the common cold or the flu manage to whittle our numbers, and the Others do sustain us to a degree - but deaths are all too frequent in the inner city," he said, showing some statistics to Meris.

Lucian then looked to Meris. "There is little need for me to expend further details as to the chattel's situation. Slaves are a high-value commodity precisely because they are denied healthy living conditions. Make the slaves last longer and you raise their value while starving the very markets that sustain the industry.

There are obvious corollaries to the idea of introducing proper healthcare in our civilization," he said. "Caring for others breeds emotional sensitivity, which itself breeds sympathy. The backbone of our revolution is not in behavioral policies - but in medical advances that are sorely needed. This also includes the introduction of magic-based healers into the populace. Initial arguments could invoke the need to do better against armed surface-dweller opponents.

As you are a Cantor, you could be made to host courses - train other healers such as yourself over a few years. Acceptance will become more likely once they all see what you have done for Nereus."

The other Squid nodded. "What can I do?
- Uphold these policies, for one - but also serve as Meris' chief example. If the Prelacy were to see how capable, how alert and potent you can become once you have been made to shed a few pounds, her point would be proven in spectacular fashion."

Nereus seemed to agree, but there was some uncertainty in his eyes. "This does seem like it could work, but what about the Chamberlain?
- We would keep him busy," replied Lucian, his gaze slightly hardening, "as he attempted to keep you out of the political theater for the past several months. Associates of mine with roots in Respite Point stand ready to put him at death's door. Not with poisons or blades, but with disease. We would not kill him, but we would turn him into the exact instrument of our policies.

If the Chamberlain is revealed to be locked in untold suffering and if Amaxi cannot wrest him free from ill health, the Prelacy will have one more argument in our favor."

[TennyoCeres84]

Meris smiled approvingly. "This is a solid idea. Mind ye, bein' a cantor is no' somet'ing that comes naturally tae ev'ryone. Ye cinno jus' put a gaggle o' slaves in my hands an' expect them tae be curin' disease an' wounds. I'll hae tae screen them an' see if they hae that talent in them.

She grimaced slightly. "My time among th' Prelacy was enlightenin'. When th' Prelates breed, it's unsanitary. Body fluids encrusted an' stains on clothes is a breedin' ground fer disease, an' the same gaes fer leavin' filth around th' houses. Bathin' is also important, fer Void Weavers an' slaves alike. Better cookin' methods would improve th' health o' slaves. Selkies an' Finfolk cin eat raw meat, as long as it has no' been tainted, but humans cinno. We need tae get rid o' food poisonin'. Teachin' th' populace tae use fire is vital."

[IamLEAM1983]

"Indeed," agreed Lucian, pointing out a lower line on his list, which did happen to include the establishment of a certain culture or appreciation for hearths and fire pits. "Fire would repeal humidity, which would also repeal disease - especially the pulmonary ones. Some species of mold appear to be releasing spores which are contributing to the onset of what strongly resembles asthma."

He pointed to another item. "This leads to one item that strongly interests me, which is the exploitation of the Black Speech's capacity to construct medical compounds currently unheard-of by the surface world's physicians. As far as I have been able to ascertain, the current mundane approaches in the art of healing are horrifying. Leeches and bleedings, old housewives' remedies that only bring temporary relief, and treatment of highly infectious diseases that leaves the healers open to spread it further..."

By way of elaboration, the older Squid focused on an empty point atop the table around which they sat, and willed some sort of mist into being. "This is a vapor I've created in the past as a test of sorts. It carries compounds that target the lungs when they are seized, and force them to expand, so that the afflicted is once more able to breathe freely. You could imprison it in a liquid solution and use moderate heat to set it free. Direct its flow with some sort of pipe, explain to the patient that he must breathe deeply, and treatment is assured."

He willed the smoke away. "Mind you, I am well aware of how dogged the surface-dwellers' pursuit of good health and better living conditions truly is. I've called their currently available measures dismal, but I remain convinced that time and research will see them reach the same conclusions and potential approaches as myself."

[TennyoCeres84]

Meris nodded. "They dae. It's a factor o' innovation but also ignorance. On th' surface, mages hae tae hide their abilities. Knowledge moves at a snail's pace. Though, That is a brilliant idea tae help wi' infections o' th' lungs. In regards tae th' use o' herbal remedies, I hae used those tae aid in relieving Nereus's infections: honey as an antiseptic an' herbal teas fer pain relief an' other beneficial qualities. Developin' a way tae cultivate gardens would also be good."

[IamLEAM1983]

Lucian nodded, but he also grunted slightly. "We'll need more than herbal tea and honey, I'm afraid."

Still, he forced himself to brighten his features slightly. "Healthcare and emotional bonds. The further we venture away from these basic considerations, however, the more all of my conjectures are shots in the dark, at this point. I cannot predict how the Prelacy would react to the sight of a loving kiss, much less an embrace, or what could happen if the Canterbury Tales were translated in the Black Speech for them to enjoy. I cannot say if we will ever succeed in making the most of them understand how flawed our initial assertions about this world were, because the Others give us tangible power."

He briefly looked away, looking slightly troubled. "Our faith is objective, whereas blessed are the humans and theriomorphs who have seen the face of an angel, for their number is less than the dots of a thimble. Even now, I hear Harrogath's hungry stirrings in the back of my mind. I can feel Them as twitches in the darker corners of my conscience, demanding unspeakable things...

I asked a former monk, once, if he had ever heard his God. He told me that his Almighty does not speak in this place, but that he knows He is still there. I spoke to men of science from the East, and they told me they had always suspected the one they called Allah was nothing but a blind grasp for some sort of truth by a mind that cannot comprehend the vastness of Creation..."

He parted his hands. "We Void Weavers can speak to our creators when we speak, and They answer. Humans spend their lives praying and receive nothing in return, when they do not simply choose to trust their eyes, their senses and their minds, and turn to Science in their search for answers. To one of my kind, this is an inferior and primitive assertion in either case, lacking clarity in one and faith in another.

How are we to accept difference as a society if something so simple as intellectual and spiritual processes that are not ours are rejected outright? This is why I say so much of what is ahead remains uncertain."

[TennyoCeres84]

Meris contemplated this matter for a moment and answered, "In th' selkie language, th' word for magic, th' world's breath, an' God are interchangeable. When I sing, I feel a connection tae th' entity Void Weavers call th' White God, as I understand th' power comes frae It. I imagine th' monks an' nuns that sing their hymns feel a similar tie. Nereus mentioned ye were an arcane dabbler; th' fire ye create is part o' that bond wi' th' White God, regardless of whether Amaxi an' Her Brothers throw a temper tantrum or not. We also discussed th' matter o' the afterlife. Th' fact yer kind were made frae th' earliest squids an' octopi means ye still share a link wi' th' White God. Th' culture frae th' surface world is an extension o' th' intellect o' th' White God. I could probably t'ink o' many other ways tae experience th' divine wi'out hearin' it in our heads."