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

[kindestgarden]

"Do Quendi shake hands?"

[lintamande]

"Some do," he says, and shakes her hand.

[kindestgarden]

Shake shake. "I'm Ranae. Ranae Swan. It's very nice to meet you."

[lintamande]

"Welcome to our city, which is yet unnamed, and its world, which is also unnamed."

[subtly_artistic]

"We should really name those. In at least one language."

[lintamande]

"Pax, probably, if it's going to be the main one spoken here."

[subtly_artistic]

"There's arguments for Pax and English and Davlian and Quenya. Not all humans in Materia speak Pax, not even a majority, although that's most of what we'll get if we start with my parents and go by word of mouth. English makes us an easier refuge for genetic engineers and other people who want to leave the Federation, which interests T'Mir. Davlian because by the numbers they're the most populous founding members of the Elendil. Quenya because we're sort of modeling it off Valinor Only Better."

[lintamande]

"Genetic engineering seems the most important of those considerations."

[subtly_artistic]

"And nothing says people can't speak whatever they want for miscellaneous purposes, but English for official business - with translations generated - seems like a strong contender."

[lintamande]

"What's a suitable English planet name? If we're playing up the refuge-for-engineers angle, perhaps?"

[subtly_artistic]

"I think English speakers don't like to name most things in English. Sometimes but not with common words. They like dead languages and stuff. Anyway, T'Mir would be a better generator of names than me, I'm still working on English."

[lintamande]

"Fair enough." He smiles at Bella, at Bella's mother, then walks off.

[subtly_artistic]

Bella takes Ranae to introduce to T'Mir. It is moderately awkward. She makes Ranae a bungalow near her own and helps her unpack into it.

[lintamande]

And Materia immigration slowly begins.

[warpfairy]

Introducing Charlie to T'Mir is differently and more awkward!

The twin bottlenecks are finding approvable immigrants, and qualified summoners and their mana. It's very slow.

The Federation is beginning to take more notice of their behavior. They would like to establish communications and consider trade opportunities. They have sent a Starfleet vessel about it. May they come down?

Well, do they promise not to arrest T'Mir?

They do promise not to arrest T'Mir.

So here's an away team in primary-colored Starfleet uniforms.

[lintamande]

The Quendi dress up for the occasion. Hello, Starfleet away team. Does the Federation know yet how they get around?

[warpfairy]

The science officer would really really like to know. Her guess is that it's some variant on transporter tech.

They also sent a linguist, isn't that considerate of them?

[lintamande]

We, too, brought our linguist. He looks like he's five but our species grows up really slowly. He speaks English just fine but would be happy to teach your linguist Quenya, or if she speaks other Federation languages he's only had the chance to learn about fifty of them.

[warpfairy]

The Federation linguist really wants to talk to the Elendil linguist. This is so exciting.





There is a Vulcan on this away team. He takes T'Mir aside for a very quiet conversation.

[lintamande]

Fëanáro is happily explaining Quenya and Pax and Davlian and everything else he's been trying to pick up since his home world made contact with Davlia - he knows not to say 'since I developed planar shifting' - and no not all Quendi pick up languages as fast as him but most of them are pretty fast at it, they have excellent memories. He's nearly a hundred and twenty one Earth years but yes, by the standards of his people he's a kid.

[warpfairy]

Well, the linguist is very impressed by his command of all these languages. How is he picking which ones to learn?

(T'Mir looks a little pensive after she and the Vulcan Starfleet person rejoin the group.)

[lintamande]

He's mostly been listening to sound samples and learning ones that are pretty but he's also been trying to learn ones that the Elendil might need.

[warpfairy]

The linguist's personal opinion is that the prettiest language is Japanese.

[lintamande]

In that case he will try learning Japanese! Would she like to speak it for the rest of the conversation? That's the fastest way he'll learn.

[warpfairy]

The linguist can do that!

(Now the Bellas are talking to each other telepathically, a little distracted from bamboozling the science officer and refusing to explain her tricorder readings.)