[Somewhere on the Mediterranean, June 28th 1261, not long after sunset] [The group is returning to Paris to deliver Pierre and a report on their discoveries. Anstace has accompanied them. However, there isn't much for them to do while sailing, and tonight it happens that they've all found themselves on deck at about the same time. There may be conversation!] [Begin!] 06* Moriel is leaning on the rail out of the way, watching the water. He doesn't seem to like being below-decks, actually, and is nearly always to be found somewhere up here during the nights. 06* Anstace was up early, because that's what you do when you're an early riser. and preoccupied with the fact that this vessel launched without any sort of attempt to appease Poseidon. she has since been wandering around the boat looking at everything, partially out of curiousity, and partially expecting to see him about to cause them to capsize and go down with all hands. 06* Eliana is on deck! She's sitting on a barrel closer to the cabins but within Moriel's line of sight. Her hood is up, a book is open on her lap, and a flame is on one shoulder (convenient the crew is used to wampyrs). 06* Moriel glances at Anstace when she wanders in his direction. "Good evening, Mistress Anstace," he says in Latin. 06* Anstace turns to look at Moriel and blinks. she shrugs and then looks out at the dark water. 06* Anstace looks at Moriel and nods, responding in the same language, "so far. i am concerned, though." her words do not seem to match her emotionless face. 06* Moriel blinks. "About what?" 06* Anstace looks out at the dark water as if expecting to see something. "this vessel was not properly launched." How do you mean? 06* Eliana turns a page. 06* Anstace turns back to Moriel. "there was no ceremony. it just left." 06* Moriel doesn't seem to understand. "Most ships depart without any ceremonies." 06* Anstace is frowning, if you can discern that by the ever-so-slightly downturned edges of her mouth. "how many of them make it to their destinations?" 06* Moriel is watching Anstace carefully, trying to figure out what this is about, but she isn't exactly a font of cues. "Most of them do. Or else people would no longer launch them." i see perhaps he is busy elsewhere He? Poseidon 06* Moriel blinks. He probably should have expected that, and yet... "I don't believe Poseidon has been worshipped in Europe for...several centuries, at least." 06* Eliana snorts and flips another page. Reading right to left. 06* Anstace stares at Moriel. "several centuries?" do you always trivialize the passage of time? 06* Moriel blinks, then says carefully, "I did not intend to do so." 06* Anstace nods. 06* Eliana speaks up, nose still effectively in her book: "It is hardly a trivialization to round to a general number when one does not know what it is precisely." 06* Anstace looks at Eliana. 06* Eliana looks at her book. 06* Moriel looks at Eliana, too! And then back to Anstace, as Eliana seems to be finished talking for the moment. every moment means something. rounding makes those moments insignificant 06* Eliana looks up at Anstace this time, and she raises an eyebrow. 01 Then what would you have one do? keep track. 01 How? Our timepieces are hardly perfect, and history has been erased and rewritten dozens of times over. 06* Moriel gives Anstace an odd look. He seems to be about to speak, but Eliana beats him to it. why would history be rewritten? the events happened. they do not un-happen. 06* Eliana rolls her eyes. She glances at her book again, memorizing the page, and then shuts it. 06* Eliana turns her attention back to Anstace. "What you say is true," she says, her voice becoming clipped. "However, the way we *perceive* history is reliant on our memories, which are often faulty and always biased, and what others tell us and what we discover on our own, which is often faulty, biased, and incomplete." 01 This is ignoring, of course, the possibility of outright fabrication. 06* Eliana gestures to Moriel. "*He* doesn't know exactly when the last person worshipped Poseidon. Likely there are people out there who do, but it has not been widespread for a long time now. How long? We do not know. Making up a time is far more an insult than admitting partial ignorance." 06* Anstace looks at Eliana, tilting her head slightly to the side as she weighs Eliana's words. that is fair 01 Of course. 06* Eliana opens her book again, flipping through the pages. 06* Anstace watches Eliana for a bit. she then turns back to Moriel. "so which god of the sea do you pray to?" ...I don't. 06* Moriel 's face goes through an interesting series of convolutions. "You...went into torpor before..." 06* Moriel manages to organize his thoughts, a little. "Are you familiar with the religion of the Hebrews?" i am aware of it. Their prophesied Messiah was born 1261 years ago. 06* Moriel is precise this time! A new religion was founded on his teachings. It's called Christianity. Most of Europe now follows it. 06* Anstace raises an eyebrow a distance that does not exist in the calculation of distance at the present time, which is either because she is completely stoic, or because she can't raise only one eyebrow. only time (and the invention of nanometers) will tell. "i see" 06* Moriel is quiet, watching Anstace for further response. 06* Anstace turns back and looks at the sea as she thinks. after a few minutes she asks, "so you pray to a man and not a deity?" 06* Moriel tilts his head and says quietly, "We believe He is both man and God." 06* Anstace turns back to Moriel and looks at him. "deities can take mortal form. this makes sense. though often the mortal they are with suffers for it." she turns completely around, leaning back against the rail and putting back to the sea. "i thought it had happened to me, at first." you were saying. 06* Moriel opens his mouth, closes it, starts again, with a glance at Eliana. "Christ is a benevolent God, not so...capricious...as the ones you worship, I believe. His teachings were often about love and being good to all people." 06* Eliana very. Pointedly. Reads. was not the god of the Hebrews the one who commanded a loyal follower to sacrifice his son and turned people into pillars of salt for their transgressions? 06* Moriel glances at Anstace, and then away again, back over the waters. "Yes. Christian theology holds that we are all sinners, all in need of God's mercy and forgiveness. To that end, He sent His son to us, to live among us, teach us, and then sacrifice himself for us..." 06* Moriel isn't looking at Eliana any more; he seems increasingly engrossed in his thoughts. i see. 06* Anstace looks at Moriel. and then to Eliana in her book. and then at the stars in the cloudless sky. 06* Eliana speaks up, having apparently stopped reading at some point during Moriel's explanation, "What's important is that it's the common religion now, and the Church an important political body." 06* Moriel glances back at Eliana again. "...yes." 01 For a number of reasons, then, it would be beneficial for you to learn about Christianity. And Islam, which Cosimo Castelletti practices and is also quite prevelant, though less so in Europe. 06* Anstace looks back down at Eliana. i have not known a religion that did not also have political sway 06* Eliana laughs. "Religion always has political sway." 06* Anstace nods. 06* Moriel says quietly, "Some more than others. The Hebrews are...not welcomed, among many Christians." i see 01 It's somewhat ridiculous, given they worship the same god. Similar to the altercations with the Muslims. 06* Moriel nods distantly. the Romans adopted and changed many of the gods i grew up believing in, even renaming them. this too seems to happen with time 06* Eliana hms. "I agree. Most things do." 06* Anstace looks off into the distance. "nothing is spared by the passage of time" 06* Eliana tilts her head as she watches Anstace from her perch. "Have you gotten a good sense of how long you were in torpor?" Curiosity tinges her voice. 06* Anstace turns back to Eliana. "there have been 2,814 solstices" 06* Eliana smiles thinly. "It seems you have." i was unable to determine this when i first awoke. that was very disorienting 06* Eliana nods. "Doubtless. Though you were probably lucky to survive at all." 06* Anstace nods in agreement. "i would like to believe that my sire survived. but as it was you who found me and not he, i cannot." 01 You could. But you would likely be wrong, yes. at least i saved some of it 06* Eliana blinks. "Some of what?" 06* Anstace smiles slightly if you are close enough to notice. "the library. i watched Alexandria burn. i did not want it to happen again" 06* Eliana 's eyes widen. "You saved written records?" she asks, excitement clear in her voice. only what i could carry i had planned to make multiple trips 06* Eliana considers. clearly that did not happen 01 Are the others in a safe location? which? 01 The records you had left behind. i am not certain. the city looked much different when we left 06* Eliana nods. 06* Anstace smiles noticeably, if by noticeably you call a slight but clear upturn in the corners of her mouth. 01 Perhaps we can journey there later. I would be more than pleased to help you recover them. i would also be pleased if this were possible 06* Eliana shrugs with one shoulder. "Many things are. We will discover if this is as well." 06* Anstace nods. "then we shall search. it would be a shame if that knowledge was lost" 01 On this, we agree. 01 [End!]