we are not truly immortal

[dark_light]

After Glass's party is over with, Amariah and Kas go home.

Amariah fetches down their alethiometers.

"It's about time I took care of Alethia's afterlife, whatever it may be," she says quietly. "What can the alethiometer tell you about what I'll find?"

Comments

[lifes_sake]

...I thought it knew everything, within the Alethia worldsheaf...

[truthwright]

Yeah. But it doesn't actually say it knows everything, just that it knows - lots of stuff.

[dark_light]

Does the mountain ever come here?

[truthwright]

It's - been here. But not for a long time.

[dark_light]

How long is a long time?

[truthwright]

Since harpies.

[dark_light]

How long is that?

[truthwright]

Uncountable time ago, apparently.

[dark_light]

Well, that's obnoxious. So I think a trip to this mountain is called for - what can it tell us about the safety rating and hostility and so on of said mountain's inhabitants?

[truthwright]

What's on the mountain is... angels, says Kas. Not like Angela. It's impossible to hide from them if you're close enough to see, but they're physically fragile. Except for their leader - 'angel' is a submeaning of 'messenger', and it calls him 'voice/messenger'. Apparently he could kick my ass in a fistfight. He's not the Authority; he's some kind of second in command. Uh, and if he knew you exist he'd hate your guts.

[dark_light]

Could he kick my ass in a fistfight? With my boosts? What about - Golden's not here, but Elspeth's in the house, could he beat her up?

[truthwright]

He couldn't beat up Elspeth, he reports.

[dark_light]

What about me, though, I don't want to ask Elspeth if it's not necessary.

[truthwright]

He could beat you up easier than he could beat me up, if we were both unarmed, Kas reports.

[dark_light]

Hmm. Okay. Might ask Elspeth, then. Is beating up definitely going to happen if we show up or does the alethiometer think we could come to a nonviolent agreement?

[truthwright]

It can't see the future, he reminds her. Why not ask Aianon? Aianon could beat Elspeth up. Aianon arm-wrestled the Joker's sweetie and won one out of two.

[dark_light]

Oh, good idea. Is Clouded Mountain all weirdly spacey like this place? Will we be able to teleport there?

[truthwright]

No teleporting.

[dark_light]

Does it prevent wishing too?

[truthwright]

Yeah, but differently. You can't wish on a coin that's in the afterlife; you can't wish on a target that's in the Clouded Mountain. I don't know if you can cast wishes while you're there; it isn't saying.

[dark_light]

Hmm. Is there non-physical danger there? I don't mind a bit of a fight if I have to fight, but I'd really rather not be harpied or anything like being harpied.

[truthwright]

No harpies, he says. Don't know about things like them.

[dark_light]

Does the alethiometer know why it doesn't know much about this place?

[truthwright]

It just says there are things there that are hidden from it.

[dark_light]

Okay then. I should decide whether to set up the new afterlife before or after addressing that. Does it know if anything is dependent on the continued existence of the Authority or the angels such that if we wind up killing them all stuff will collapse?