You return to the human encampment. Everyone is concerned, in one way or another. Bevridge is cross that you took the risk of getting that close to any of the demons here; Yvette is worried as to whether you were hurt. Mitzu wants to know whatever you can tell him about the Oni with whom you were conversing. Helga tells you that you are very brave to have gone to face that fiery danger yourself, but you should not take such risks. The Irishman is laughing, saying he wishes he had a good whiskey to raise a toast to such bravado.
In short, you're probably going to have to talk to at least some of them before things will return to "normal".
--M. J. Young
I will apologize to Bevridge, and explain that the demons were failing in an attempt to control a large fire that could have headed towards this encampment and put everyone in danger, and I could not let anyone here be harmed.
To Yvette and Helga's concern of my safety, I will thank them for worrying and assure them that I am alright.
I will share a chuckle with O'Grady and quip, "What's life if you don't enjoy it, right?"
I'll tell Mitz about how similar to us the oni are, yet at the same time how different. They look out for each other, they are concerned about life and wish to preserve it no matter what. They don't have personal belongings or believe in attachments to corporeal things. That they are peaceful and wish to live in harmony, but are capable of defending themselves, if necessary.
One more apology around for making people worry, for emphasis.
Now that I am back with my sensei, I'd like to continue my training program.
You manage to smooth everything over quite nicely. Bevridge says, in a gruff British concession, "Well, then, of course you did the right thing. Important to show the natives how to handle these problems, if you can get that kind of rappoire with them."
Mitzu resumes training you, although he asks whether you wouldn't like to get some rest after your harrowing experience.
--M. J. Young
I will confess to Mitzu that, while I was gone for a long time, the ordeal was not very physically demanding, although it was mentally exhausting. That being said, I will assure him that I did get plenty of rest while away, and I am eager to continue training.
Cue the one-training-session time lapse!
Mitzu wants to meet the oni, and he wants to know how you get to them when they live at the tops of those pillars.
--M. J. Young
"Oh, of course, I would love to take you to meet the one named Majdi! He is actually very friendly and curious, if a bit wary of us and our intentions, but he would be absolutely delighted to have company.
"I fear he may be a bit tired from the previous ordeal, so we should give him a month or so to recuperate from it all. How does that sound?"
Well, Mitzu's face falls at the idea that he's going to have to wait a month to meet Majdi; but then, what are his alternatives?
You improve your Mitzu Assault significantly over the next month, as well as the Rear Kick, Bo Stick, Axe Kick, and Leaping Kick. Of the skills Mitzu is teaching you, only the Spinning Kick seems to be lagging at this point.
That plus the routine of life fills most of the month, and Mitzu is now wondering whether you're going to take him to meed Majdi.
--M. J. Young
Of course, what kind of a person would I be if I didn't!
We'll walk/jog out to the pillar, and I'll telepathically contact Majdi ahead of time to let him know we're on our way to visit. I'll let him know it's just me and Mitz coming, and make sure it's a good time (if it's not, we'll depart at a time that is better).
When we get to the pillar, I'll contact Majdi again and find out if it's alright to come up. With Mitzu's permission, I'll try to levitate/fly and carry Mitz to the top (never flown carrying something so heavy/alive, new use?)
I'll introduce Mitzu to Majdi as a student of the body and spirit, and I'll introduce Majdi to Mitzu as a teacher/student of spiritual pursuits.
Majdi would be pleased to see the two of you. He'll have to make arrangements for extra food.
You fail to levitate, but fly with ease, learning much about how to extend your levitation/flight field around an object heavier and larger than yourself (or than you could otherwise carry) while holding it.
Mitzu is a bit nervous, and asks how you do that; perhaps fortuitously, the rather plain plane below gives very little sense of your altitude, and the smooth face of the black pillar gives little sense of your vertical velocity, and the feeling of weightlessness that accompanies psionic flight gives no sense of acceleration, so Mitzu really has no idea how high you are when you land in Majdi's home.
Mitzu apologizes for being a bit out of sorts on landing. "It was my first time flying without wings," he says.
"Do you have wings?" Majdi asks.
Mitzu laughs. "No, but I have been in airplanes. My English is not so good."
"Nor mine," Majdi replies. "But it is good enough for the purpose, and Ryan has helped me much. Do you prefer another language? Eagle, perhaps? Or French? I know several."
"Japanese?"
"I have not heard of that language. Is it difficult?"
"It is beautiful," Mitzu says; "but I am prejudiced--it is the language of my homeland."
"Ah, yes. I have learned many languages, and they are all wonderful in their own way, but none seem so lovely to me as Bah."
He will then ask what brings you to see him.
--M. J. Young
"My friend Mitzu was interested in meeting you; he is very curious about you and your people, and has a desire to learn more about life here."
We'll probably spend a couple hours chatting, while Mitzu asks questions and Majdi answers them, with my interjections and simplifications/translations thrown here and there. You can save time on writing the dialogue by just saying "we talked", unless there was another plot or character development device you wanted to toss out. If you want to skim the dialogue, I want to be sure to bring up the magic of the Bah, and the flight (my character believes 'psionics' to be 'magic' and doesn't really differentiate the two at this juncture) and offer to share some of what I know with either or both of them.
Majdi is very interested in exploring what you know of magic (or of psionics, and he will make the distinction). Bah learn such things from infancy, really, but he did not know that technodemons knew anything of the sort.
His magic relies mostly on praying to Bah Tor, the creator of the world, to intervene on his behalf; but he has learned more recently to reach into the supernatural world himself and draw power from it directly. He considers this a more mature way of using magic, but recognizes that it is also more difficult. He also distinguishes these from drawing power from within himself, of controlling things by thought and force of will.
Mitzu is curious whether that aspect of doing things by force of will is in any way similar to the inner focus he uses to concentrate on his martial arts. Once Mitzu explains what he means by that, Majdi says that he understands, that he learned such things as a tolo sin and a tolo bran--what you would call the walkers who herd the worms and the flyers who move between the pillars and the herds--and that they do require a kind of concentration, but it is more a concentration of releasing your movements to your body rather than containing them in your mind.
--M. J. Young
I come back a few times a week, read this post, frown, and say I don't have any ideas about that, I guess I'll answer it later. It's been a month and I still don't really have anything to add heh...
I'll explain that most of what I have learned of mental powers involve moving something without touching it - from accelerating or slowing particles to control heat, to moving objects, to lifting myself - or communicating with others without speaking. I've also dabbled with a few notions that I haven't fully developed, and I consider myself a novice overall; half the time I can't do what I'm trying when I need, but I have the basic motions down.
A lot of times I break simply so that I'm not writing the entire story, to give you the chance to speak or act before I run away with it. If you've nothing to add, just say so--you know, "I nod knowingly," or "I listen to their conversation and consider what they're saying." That's my cue that you've actually seen the post and are comfortable with where it's going--which is better than having me take it somewhere and you decide that you would have jumped in quite a while back.
"Controlling heat by mental powers? That is fascinating. You shall have to show me how it is done. What of supernatural powers? Have you done anything with them?"
"Wait a minute," Mitzu interrupts. "You can move things with your mind? I thought you were human?" He looks genuinely puzzled.
--M. J. Young
So noted, I'll take it under advisement.
To Mitzu: "I used to watch psychics on late night TV. I was always skeptical about them, but they were human, and I can do a lot of things that they always claimed they could do. I think the logical mind is probably the greatest obstacle of human development - we believe something is impossible, so it becomes impossible for us. Similar to mind over matter, being able to control your body through conditioning, you can control your mind in the same sense.
"Faith is kind of the same thing in reverse. If we believe there to be a supernatural power watching us, we empower it to protect us, to make us well, or even to harm those who wish us ill feelings."
To Majdi: "I have been travelling a long time, and through most if it I have only had myself to rely on. I wouldn't even know where to begin in attempting a supernatural approach to anything. I suppose that's why it's called "super" natural though?
"I would love to show you what I know. It should be easy for you, Majdi."
I'll attempt to demonstrate pyrokinesis on a section of the rock wall - it doesn't need to be spectacular and I am not in a hurry, just looking to make it warmer than the surrounding stone.
You succeed in warming the rock.
"Very interesting," Magdi says. "You say this is done by moving something inside the rock, as if it were made of tiny fragments too small to see that can be moved without moving the rock or changing its shape?"
"It is difficult to explain where to begin with magic; our walkers begin learning it as soon as they begin caring for our worms. Even before that, though, our worms are taught to trust Bah Tor--what you would call Life Giver, or God--to believe that he is there and willing to help us. It is easier to call on Bah Tor for aid than to tap the powers yourself, but doing so makes you familiar with the powers, and channels the powers through you."
Mitzu says, "Can you teach me how to control your mind in these ways?"
--M. J. Young
I'll attempt to telepathically contact Mitzu and show him how to read my mind through example. I'll do the same for Majdi, and then try to show them how to read each other's minds, and then show them how to open up the telepathic link for 2-way communication.
It is more difficult to read Magdi's mind than Mitzu's, but you are a skilled trainer in psionics, and combining your examples and instruction you manage to teach both of them to read minds.
They, too, find it more difficult to read each other's minds.
You also become aware that telepathy to Magdi is an entirely different skill from telepathy to Mitzu. With Mitzu, it is as if you're both using the same kind of communications systems, like talking on telephones; with Magdi, it's more like trying to interface a voice telephone line with a computer digital voice synthesis system--and not because it's more difficult, but because even when you know how to do it it is still different systems talking to each other.
Thus you have to teach Mitzu one skill for communicating with you and a different skill for communicating with Magdi; you also have to teach Magdi the skill you use to contact him for him to contact both of you. Magdi already knows how to telepathically contact other Bah, but had assumed when he could not contact you with that skill that you were shielded against such contact somehow.
(You already have the two skills, telepathy to humans and telepathy to humanoids, on your sheet.)
--M. J. Young
Sounds good, teach away.
You teach them those skills effectively; although they are not terribly good at it, you are now able to contact each other telepathically.
--M. J. Young
I'll let them experiment with the telepathy for a few minutes, before asking Majdi about something that struck my curiousity: "You mentioned being able to reach the supernatural world yourself, and draw upon its energy. This concept fascinates me; could you expound?"
"Well, certainly." He makes a face that you've come to recognize as his puzzled why-don't-you-know-this face which always quickly resolves into the because-he's-an-alien-tech-demon face, and gives what you've recognized as his equivalent of a shrug.
"From very young, we teach our Bah Dzen--it means New Life, but you would call them the worms--the important basic magic of trusting Bah Tor, the Life Giver--whom you would call Creator or God, I think. Then as they grow and become Tolo Sin--Walking Beings, who care for the Bah Dzen--they learn to call on Bah Tor for power, what you would call, I think, supplication, perhaps prayer, based on the confidence they have been taught. Because they are trusting Him, it is easier to learn this kind of magic. However, a Mu-tahk--a scholar, like myself--seeks understanding of all things. Since we already have learned a great deal about asking Bah Tor to release his power in the world, most of us also explore ways in which we can release that power ourselves. It is more difficult, relying on yourself for the power, but it is possible to do; and it is similar in many ways to prayer, as it involves focusing your faith, your expectation, on what you hope to have happen, and guiding it through your trust in that power.
"Does that answer your question?"
--M. J. Young
"Actually, it does make a lot of sense. Rather than focussing your own energy, like I do with my mind, you can tap into the energy that already exists all around us and draw upon that to achieve effects that may be far greater than what you would be capable of doing yourself.
"Would this be something you could show me how to do? Maybe something small, that you would learn early on in your studies, since I am technically young in the sense that I have never done or seen anything like this before."
"Oh yes," Majdi says confidentally, and then hedges. "Well, maybe. Our people first learn the power of Bah Tor, calling on our creator to work on our behalf. It is from this foundation that the Mu-tahk learn to tap the power of the supernatural realm without impinging upon Him for aid. This, though, means that the first lessons in magic are about understanding the supernatural realm, the love Bah Tor has for His creations, and our place in his creation. However, I do not myself understand your place in this universe, and I am confused--did Bah Tor make you, and if so, what was His purpose in creating demons, beings who use technology instead of magic, against His commands to us? Is it right for you to do this, and wrong for us? I am very confused about it all; I freely admit that. After all, recognizing our ignorance is the first step to understanding the truth.
"I realize that you are still very young in many ways; but what do you know of your own creation, and your place in the world?"
As a footnote for perspective, I would remind you that the Psiontist worked with the Architect in translating the first five books of the Bible into Dar Koni; you thus have at least that much background, along with whatever discussions you might have had with him about them at that time.
--M. J. Young
I chat with the Mutahk about Genesis and the story of our creation; I'll give him the fifty cent tour in an effort to not overcomplicate things, and I'll let him know there is more detail than I will reveal as an overview.
Additionally, I will let him know that in the world I came from, we were somewhat displaced from our creator: it was upon each of us to believe that He existed and have faith that He would be there for us every day and would be there for us at the end, but we did not have any direct communication with Him or reassurance that He existed aside from stories passed down through the generations. Because of the nature of the stories that were told, and the length of time we went without clarification, there were many different versions of the same story spread out over the many cultures of our world. The version I know, and the version Mitzu knew, as a very strong example, may be very different in detail, but have the same general idea. (Mitzu may be Shinto, Buddhist or Christian if he or his family lived in Japan, after all).
I will also add that our people developed technology as a way to make our lives easier, since we were not in direct contact with our Creator and did not ask Him for help in the same way Majdi's people can. Most of our creations assist us with tasks we could not normally perform ourselves, and many people view them as the gifts our Creator gave us to live our lives.
Magdi takes all of this in with great interest, although he shows no inclination toward wanting you to omit details except so as to give more information overall. He is particularly intrigued by the idea that technology might have been given you by your creator as a substitute for his direct aid.
When the summary is complete, he has a few questions. First, do you believe that your creator, whatever you would call him, would be willing to do things on your behalf were you to pray and ask him? Second, whether or not you believe that, do you believe that Bah Tor, the life giver who is creator of this world, would aid you? (He does not know whether that is something Bah Tor would do, and the question fascinates him--much as some human theologians might be fascinated by the question of whether demons could be saved.) Your suggestion that you are called upon to trust your creator also intrigues him. After all, from his perspective, holy magic is about trusting Bah Tor to assist in very clear and specific ways, and so building trust in him gradually through experience.
He speculates that perhaps, given that you use technology to perform tasks you could not perform yourself, that Bah Tor has forbidden the use of technology in Bah Ke'gehn so that the Bah will trust him to do those things they could not do for themselves. Yet it is curious, he says, that your creator would have treated you so, having you learn to do for yourselves, and in very creative ways, things that he does not do for you.
That opens another possibility to him. After all, you are here in Bah Ke'gehn, and from what he has seen, the technology used by your demon friends does not seem to work at all well; yet you speak of it as if it were something reliable. It is possible that since you are here, where the technology your creator gave you with which to help yourselves does not work so well, your creator might give you help in other ways.
Those things he speculates, in conversation with you about these ideas.
--M. J. Young
The Kid is Bah'Kegan. I can't believe it's been almost two years since the last post; time can really get away from you.
"The Lord works in mysterious ways," is a common saying among our people. Often our creator offers assistance in ways that we don't immediately recognize as helpful or useful until a moment passes where we realize how differently things could have gone had that one subtle thing been different. I believe that this is His way of helping humans; as a race we are greedy, selfish, and self-centered by nature, and if we had access to direct help any time we asked it would surely be abused. As long as we are given enough doubt as to whether He is directly supporting us, we will not rely solely on Him and be able to continue under our own power, which is where our development of technology comes into play.
Technology is nothing but a means to an end. We create fire, so that we can use heat to cook food or make many useful things, or use light to see in dark places. We use wheeled containers to transport materials that are far too heavy to carry on our own backs. Vehicles are capable of travelling faster than most of us can run, allowing us to shorten the amount of time between two places which effectively allows our settlements to be larger and farther apart. Weapons to hunt, tools to farm. The longer we worked on developing these tools, the more advanced they became.
Unfortunately, everything that has a use, has multiple uses, and mis-uses. Farming tools, hunting weapons, and fire can all be used against humans, either to scare or kill. Vehicles and roads can be used to move quickly, to give less warning before an attack. Weapons have historically been the main driving developmental factor of technology, as we look for bigger and better ways to kill our neighbor and take what was his for ourselves.
Greed is a very strong theme in our biblical history; from Adam and Eve, to Judas, to Soloman, we are constantly shown how the greatest and worst of men can succumb to the power of self-indulgence. I explain that humans have a very individual perspective on the world, much different from the Mu-tahk; we do not share any automatic spiritual or psychological connection to one another, and each human seeks to do what he can to make his own life more meaningful, enjoyable, or extensive. Most human cultures teach us to be civil: to care for and respect one another, to give aid when it is needed. It is this teaching that makes our people good; without it, humans can become some very scary monsters.
It is possible that this evil is that from which Bah Tor seeks to protect his children: so long as you do not want for anything, you will have no reason to become greedy enough to covet or kill your brothers and sisters.
I do not know whether the Bah Tor would aid me directly, but he knows of the presence of humans in his world and he seems to be indifferent at the worst, since they are comfortable and safe here. My guess would be that if I were to call upon his aid in the same way as one of his creations, he would either be 1. honored that I would bow to his world and grant assistance, 2. offended that I would presume to ask him for favors when I am not one of his creations, or 3. not understand why a being not of this world would appeal to him for his assistance, and have to choose out of curiousity whether to help or not. As I have not consulted with many supreme beings lately, I will also concede that I would never presume to know what drives the Bah Tor and what decisions he may or may not make.
Magdi nods. "That is very interesting. I can see why Bah Tor might have allowed me to meet you. Your ideas are so fascinating, so different from any I would have found here. There are among us, too, some who deny the existence of Bah Tor; we call them the Dol Mutahk, what in your language would be Rogue Scholars, because they believe that there are no gods or spirits, only power, and they learn to tap that power but not to trust Bah Tor. There are not many of these, but the Lanatak consider them very dangerous.
"It does not, though, answer the question; or perhaps it does. The question is, do you believe that you can ask either your own creator or Bah Tor to help you, and expect to receive help?
"I should clarify what I mean by 'expect'. If I were to ask you to help me with a Solanadon, I would expect that you would help, even though I would know that you might not do so, or that the help you gave might not be what I expected. That does not change the fact that when I asked I expected. Do you understand?"
--M. J. Young
"When you put it into that context, I understand it a little better. From what you've told me of Bah Tor and what I've learned about God from our stories, I believe that both would help me if I asked, even if the help didn't come immediately or in the way I was expecting.
"I do feel a little uncomfortable asking for help, though. I have always tried my best to run under my own steam; I would feel like I was making a nuisance of myself if I constantly sought help from such an important presence when there is a way for me to utilize my own power to achieve a similar result."
The existence of rogue scholars intrigues me in one of those it-didn't-occur-to-me-they-existed ways, and my curiousity outweighs my concern for the possible sensitivity of the topic. "Are the Dol Mutahk exiles in some way, quarantined away from others or forbidden to interact with other forms?"
"You have such interesting ideas. I suppose in a way all Mutahk are isolated. This is the time in our lives when we are most independent, studying privately to learn as much as possible, called upon at times to help the overseers solve problems. Yet it is not easy to live without the community to provide food, and we would not refuse to feed those Dol Mutahk who wish it. I suspect some conjure food, and some steal it, but no Bah is refused food. On the other hand, they tend to isolate themselves. To some degree mutahk do this, relative to other Bah, because it is that burning curiosity that consumes us in this phase of life, that we want to know, and we ask questions, and we seek answers, even if the knowledge has no use or purpose, even if we do not expect it to have a use or purpose. Other Bah find this a bit annoying. Thus Mutahk associate mostly with other Mutahk. The Dol Mutahk then do not associate with the rest of us, because they find our belief in Bah Tor irritating. All Mutahk I think question whether Bah Tor exists, or truly cares, or whether there is another explanation for all that we know; that is part of being a Mutahk. Most of us conclude that Bah Tor is our caring creator, and many affirmed in that belief become Tau Mutahk, the scholar priests. They continue to research and question for the rest of their lives. Of course, a few of us will morph to the next phase of life, being offered the opportunity to become Lanatak, overseers over the Bah. There are also the Dol Nor, what you might call Black Wizards in your language, who morph to the next level but reject Bah Tor and refuse the responsibility of serving the Bah as leaders.
"So in that sense, no, we do not quarantine the Dol Mutahk, but they do tend to withdraw from us."
--M. J. Young
"I find it very fascinating that one could go through so many transformations that rely on Bah Tor only to end up concluding he does not exist, but in a way I can see a parallel in the development of some human societies so it shouldn't really surprise me too much."
The conversation was so immersive that I completely forgot Mitzu was sitting with us; I look to him to see if he was just sitting and following the whole time or if he lost interest and wandered off. "Mitz, did you have anything else you wanted to ask Majdi? We should probably head back soon, before the others worry that you've been eaten by technology-hating demons or something." I wink and flash a grin at Majdi to let him know it was a joke, hoping it doesn't offend him.
"I don't know if it's quite like that," Magdi says. "You grow, yes? Your kind does not grow as dramatically as the Bah, but you are smaller and different from your friend Mitzu, and the demons--that is, the humans--at your camp seem to be in different forms to some degree. Bah also grow, and in our growth we also change forms. I have seen in your language a creature called a 'butterfly' which apparently changes form. Does the butterfly think that its change was an act of its god? Certainly it was, but it was also a change that was always inherent in the butterfly from the moment of its creation. So, too, the Bah change as part of our life cycle, and while it all is from our creator, it is also a natural part of our growth."
Mitzu has been listening.
As you walk away, he says, "You really know a lot for a little kid. Where did you learn all of this?"
--M. J. Young
"I learned much of it from my father. Whenever I asked a question he would always make sure to answer as thoroughly and in as much detail as he could. We spent a lot of time translating the Bible into an alien language, so I am particularly knowledgable of the first books.
"I also attended college, and I worked in a laboratory doing developmental research for a good amount of time. One of the benefits to our current situation is that we have been given the gift of time itself, what some would consider the world's most precious commodity. It would be a waste to have all the time in the world and not spend it learning new and exciting things about the world around us, wouldn't it?"
Thanking Majdi for his conversation and hospitality, we'll depart for the human settlement. Levitate or fly to the ground together, then we can jog back. It's good to stay in shape.
You manage to levitate both of you to the ground. You realize that you're losing your grip, and have to rush it a bit, and the landing is not ideal, but you make it all right; and Mitzu is still astonished that you can do it at all, so whether you can do it well doesn't really impact him.
You job back toward the pillar.
"Is it true," he asks, "that you went to college? How did you do that, as young as you are? Where was that?"\
--M. J. Young
"It's commonly accepted by the other people here that we are in Hell. I don't believe that to be the case, but I must admit I agree on one point: we are in an afterlife, of sorts. When we die, something happens to our bodies and belongings and we wake up somewhere else. My father was researching it, but I don't know the science behind it.
"I've died a half dozen times, and I've probably lived as long after my first death as long as I lived before it. We don't seem to age naturally, so I look younger than my years. Hope you weren't counting on growing any taller." I add the last with a shrug, followed by a quick grin.
I'll answer his rush of questions with what I know; it's a long jog and the conversation is a nice distraction. When we get back we'll check in with Clive and the others, and then grab some food and rest.
If nothing happens I will train for another month with Mitzu.
Clive wants to know where you went and what you learned from your travels. Mitzu waits for your lead on this, as you both know that Clive does not trust the "demons".
--M. J. Young
We've only been gone for the better part of a day, but I don't fault Clive for being paranoid given the current situation. I want to bridge the gap between these people, but it will be a delicate process.
"We were training," I say with a shrug. "We did some long-distance running today, took a couple breaks to stretch and do some form work along the way."
Since we've been trsaining every day for the last month, and we did run up and back, this seems a plausible explanation to me.
--
During sparring training, I want to use psionic mind reading to predict attack sequences and find holes in defense. The mind reading should be like a sustained one-way telepathic link. I'll only use it during half of the spars; the intent is to be able to use it in combat without relying on it.
You pick up this skill very easily and comfortably, seeing what Mitzu is thinking an instant before he does it. It's not all that helpful against the remarkably skilled Mitzu, as he does not anticipate his own actions by very much, but you know what he is about to do before he does it, and it enables you to dodge and block a bit better.
--M. J. Young
Sounds good. Continue with the old training regimen the rest of the month unless something happens that breaks routine.
Nothing happens for the next 40 days. You're living in Bevridge's shelter and eating the soup he conjures in his magic pot.
Mitzu spars with you regularly, but he's on something closer to a 27 hour day so your schedules interact oddly. He also wants to know about learning more psionic tricks (I recall that you already taught him telepathy).
--M. J. Young
Seems a fair trade, since he's teaching me his martial arts style. I'll instruct him to establish a telepathic link with me; if he fails I'll make the link; if I fail, I'll try to read his mind to get a bearing on his psyche and then try to establish the telepathic link. Then I'll have him observe how I can use clairvoyance to see in places that aren't immediately with us: we'll take a peek on Clive and see what he's doing. Once he has the example I'll have him try.
While he is trying this out, I'm going to try to "listen" for psionic interference outside of the telepahtic link, to see if I can pick up on his use or attempted use of psionics.