on a lark

[alicornucopia]

She combs and combs the world aside and there is another world, just ahead, and she steps in.

The combed-away hole closes behind her. She puts her comb in her pocket.

Thanjen (Unbitwise)

Blueberry (kappa)

Hivers (Rockeye)

Comments

[alicornucopia]

"That seems like a long time to wait just for a radio."

[wind_on_my_face]

“‘Just a radio’ can be the difference between life and death.”

[alicornucopia]

"How?"

[wind_on_my_face]

“If you're somewhere with nobody around, like this island, and you get sick, or hurt despite your reinforcements, or you run out of energy in a place where you can't walk away, then you can ask for help. And if you want them to then, people can find where you are.”

[alicornucopia]

"Only if you're someplace where another radio can hear your radio."

[wind_on_my_face]

“That's why there are relays, to make sure that those places are very rare.”

[alicornucopia]

"Well, I don't think it'd be that useful for me."

[wind_on_my_face]

“Why not?”

[alicornucopia]

"I'm not always places where there's relays."

[wind_on_my_face]

“Well, if you're going into a cave or something, you can also bring local repeaters. Or, you know, make sure other people are around. I'm not saying bringing a radio can help all the time, just often.”

[alicornucopia]

"I don't think it'll help me."

[wind_on_my_face]

“Why's that?”

[alicornucopia]

"I already said, but you weren't paying much attention, I guess." She climbs into her reconstructed griffin and seals it up behind her. Stretches, catlike.

[wind_on_my_face]

“You said you weren't always places where there were relays, not that you were never places where there were relays.”

[alicornucopia]

"Well, I'm a place with relays right now, I guess, but I might never be again."

[wind_on_my_face]

“How do you do that? I can't think of any places like that except for ones that also don't have food and stuff.”

[alicornucopia]

"I haven't just never eaten for my whole life, don't be silly."

[wind_on_my_face]

Gently: “Then where do you eat?”

[alicornucopia]

She snorts. "Why do you want to know?"

[wind_on_my_face]

“Right now, you don't think I'm making sense and I don't think you're making sense. If you tell me some things, maybe that'll help. I'll tell you whatever you want to know about me.”

[alicornucopia]

"You make sense, you're just wrong about things because I haven't explained them because I don't want to."

[wind_on_my_face]

“Okay.”

[alicornucopia]

She gets out of the griffin again, and closes it up behind her, and sits on its neck in front of the wing joints.

"I might tell you if you really want to know, because you've been helpful. But only when I'm ready to go, probably."

[wind_on_my_face]

(He gets a preliminary response to his report. Insofar as there is a consensus to be summarized, it is: this is a tricky situation, you're doing fine, carry on, keep us posted. Great.)

“And then I suppose I’m likely even more confused.”

[alicornucopia]

"Probably. I don't even know all of the stuff you probably want to know."