high-energy physics

[warpfairy]

Federation political prisons are not particularly uncomfortable. She's not going anywhere, but she can read, she's considering taking up an instrument, the only really awkward thing is that she doesn't particularly want to be supervised while she's sweating her way through her next pon farr one way or another but that's years off. That and she wishes she'd taken longer to get caught. But she was running out of the really low-hanging fruit anyway.

This is what she signed up for. She makes up imaginary profiles of people on the planets she got to, people who can live longer fuller lives with the stars in reach, one per day. One per day and she'll have loads of estimated impact left unused when she dies. Perfectly reasonable tradeoff and she can still read books.

Someone wants to interview her about Vulcan; they don't want to lose anything that anybody remembers; she gives the interview and then picks up some poetry.

Comments

[lintamande]

"That we're grateful for their aid and a place to live, that we are establishing a new neighbor of theirs as a first step in the creation of an alternative to the Federation, and that we'll visit regularly and more regularly once the evacuation of the people in current danger is complete?" Rúmil offers.

[warpfairy]

"Not bad. How many people are we talking about evacuating, here?"

[subtly_artistic]

"Billions but not everybody is likely to want to go, especially not if they'd have to join the sort of place we'd design and make according cultural compromises. For instance, I assume killing and eating people will be illegal. I'm nervous about establishing communication - I'm not sure it'd be dangerous for them to receive it and it seems firmly established that my universe can't or doesn't reach outside itself and 'nearby' planes. We might have to be vague about the advantages of the Elendil. But figuring out a way to ask is better than just kidnapping people en masse."

[lintamande]

"Killing and eating people will definitely be illegal," Fëanáro says firmly. "We can just tell them that there's always enough food and that it's safe for everyone and that you don't have to work and can work on anything you want and nothing will hurt you, we don't have to explain starships or genetic engineering."

[subtly_artistic]

"If killing and eating people is illegal we can rule out large proportions of several species," Bella says. "Similar results for other commonsense laws. But we'll get some response and it may be large. We have to invent interplanar earwires first though."

[lintamande]

"Let's do that," he says, "so I can tell my parents I'm safe and have two Bellas to look after me."

[subtly_artistic]

"I hope that helps. - Maybe we should invent a version that does multiperson conversations."

[lintamande]

"Interplanar first," he says.

[subtly_artistic]

"Sure. T'Mir, you're okay to independent study for a bit?"

[warpfairy]

"Think so."

[subtly_artistic]

Invention time!

[lintamande]

They are sitting in a starship inventing interplanar earbuds and it is great.

[subtly_artistic]

They have all the building blocks for this one - basic earwire design, planar transfer. It does not take long to come together, although they have to find a thing to enchant once they have the magic part down.

"Who should be called first and by whom?" Bella asks, once that's done.

[lintamande]

"My parents," Fëanáro says.

"I agree," says Rúmil.

[subtly_artistic]

"But we don't have multi-person conversations, so which one, and who's calling."

[lintamande]

"I'll call my mom first," Fëanáro says. "She'd be more sad about me calling my dad then he'd be about me calling her."

[subtly_artistic]

So Bella hands him the earwire.

[lintamande]

"Amil? I went and got Bella and took her to a safer place. Did you get the note I left? And the note Rúmil left?"

"Oh, Fëanáro," she says. "I did. Are you okay? Are all of you okay? We're petitioning to get Bella let back into Valinor-"

"No," he says, "this world is nicer anyway, it has another Bella and it has starships and we're getting a planet and saving everyone in Materia and founding an alliance and there are billions of languages."

"And no danger?"

"Nope."

"...can I talk to Rúmil about that? Not right now, maybe later?"

"Yeah. He's here. We're in a starship. I'm sorry for scaring you but I had to get Bella."

"I know you felt that way. We love you. We just want you to stay alive."

"Well. I'm alive."

"Fëanáro, please come home. Just to visit, if you really like your world better. Come home and tell us about it and we'll talk."

"The Valar might not let me leave."

"Then you could build starships here."

"I don't want to come home until I'm grownup."

"And we don't want to miss you until then."

[subtly_artistic]

(The bystanders are not privy to this conversation because that is not how earwires work. Bella and T'Mir chat about Bella-and-T'Mir things.)

[lintamande]

After a few more minutes he hands the earwire to Rúmil.

[subtly_artistic]

"What'd she say?"

[lintamande]

"She loves me and is glad I'm safe. Uh. I said this realm was perfectly safe. It pretty much is! The universe doesn't eat people, there are no dragons..."

[warpfairy]

"It's not perfectly safe! There are all kinds of anomalies if you explore deep space long enough, there are hostile cultures with advanced weapons, I'd be legitimately terrified if we met Klingons or Cardassians."

[lintamande]

"Why? What are they like? The Klingon language is weird but that doesn't make them bad people, just ignorant..."

[warpfairy]

"Their language has nothing to do with it. They're a warrior culture, very easily provoked and very good at fighting."