whoa, deja vu!!! My schedule is also rather hectic at the moment, so I ca appreciate that. Take your time, consider your responses, and we'll pick up whenever we can =)
yeeech, double post. please bear with me, it happens from time to time, as I generally post from my mobile phone. for your information, I own no dice at this time, and I find stopwatches to be too time consuming when you really want random numbers, so I use the random integer generator at www.random.org (I believe it's .org, though it may be .com). it uses atmospheric noise to generate more random numbers than a computer program within whatever field I desire (2 - 40, 11 - 40, 1 - 100, 3 - 30, or whatever), and also has the nifty feature of allowing me to generate up to 10000 numbers within the range provided at once (far more than I will probably ever need). I find it generally perfect for our requirements.
This is a *bump* for MJ to find this thread again. :)
O.K.--it looks like the last post here was Kyler concluding that you had made a significant impact on Friar Tuck's position. That will end that conversation, except for the part that I found interesting: the potential that you yourself might wind up the vic--er, object of adulation leading to canonization as a saint to whom Catholics go to ask for prayers.
"As for your other question," Tuck says, "I must admit it's not a problem I've faced. Sure, the men come and ask me to pray for them, but they don't expect miracles, and although I've seen God work I'm clearly not in the same class as you are. But if people come to you asking you to pray for them, what do you do?"
--M. J. Young
I consider thoughtfully.
In the second chapter of the first book of Timothy, it is written:
I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
"So the command of Holy Scripture is clear. If people come to me asking me to pray for them, I will certainly do so, and gladly."
"But I must pray the LORD, and must exhort the people, that they seek the intercessory prayers of man only from the living on this earth, rather than from the dead."
"And may the LORD have mercy upon us all, that true knowledge of His ways may be preserved, and error may be corrected."
"You confuse me, brother. Are you suggesting that Peter and Paul, and James and John, and the other James, not to say Matthew and Luke, are dead? But the Lord Himself said that God is not the God of the dead but of the living, so just as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are alive, so too all those who have crossed over before us must also be alive."
--M. J. Young
OOC: Sorry, I'm a bit confused here. Although it was long ago for us (Feb 12, 2010), it was quite recently in this conversation that I addressed this exact point. Is Tuck bringing it up again because he has forgotten the point I just made? Or does he need repetition and reassurance? Or is it just that it has been so long since we as players have covered this ground that Tuck is bringing it up again? :p
Mea culpa; I did not stretch back far enough to review that part of the debate. Let me change that.
"Now, it's been a while, but brother, I remember reading where Paul wrote, 'I never cease to pray for you.' That's holy scripture; that means it's true. So if Paul never ceases to pray for his readers, he must be praying for us now, right?"
--M. J. Young
"Ah, but Paul wrote that at a certain specific point in his life on this earth. And in the present tense for that time, he says 'I never cease to pray for you'. That is not the same as saying 'I *will* never cease', nor is it the same as saying he prays for us, rather than those he originally wrote his letter to."
"Does that mean he can't be generally praying for believers now? No. However, as we discussed before, that is different than believing that Paul hears our specific petitions, and prays for us specifically. From Holy Scripture, there is only One with that kind of omniscience or omnipresence, and He is a Jealous God, not sharing His Glory with any other."
OOC: We kind of covered this point already as well, but it has indeed been awhile in RL since the players have looked at this stuff. I had to do some serious rereading to refresh my memories... :)
As we stir the embers of this venerable thread, the natural question is where to go from here. I'm quite OK with fast forwarding a wrap up of the current conversation with Tuck, particularly as it might spare you from having to sift through the old embers in quite as much detail.
One facet I know we had some interest in was exploring the tension between my healing ministrations and the snare of my ending up as "Saint John of Nottinghamshire", as you so eloquently stated it. We could fast forward to the next chapter in that unfolding saga, if you wish.
Another facet that I would love to stumble into (if the possibility exists) involves the thoughts I was able to glean from that first horseman I spotted riding through Sherwood Forest ( http://discussions.gamingoutpost.com/index.php?showtopic=82995&st=20 )...
He is hurrying because he fears that bandits will attempt to stop him, and also because he believes the wood to be haunted by magical beings who work with the bandits. He wants to be out of the wood by dark, but doubts he can make it--but he cannot make it back to Nottingham even if he turns around.
We are already in a world with high Mag, where one English legend, Robin Hood, lives in truth. Suppose that other legends, such as "magical beings" (pixies, elves, gnomes, or whatever else) were also a reality in this forest?
I've never read the Multiverser specs for Sherwood Forest. However, if it doesn't specify that there *aren't* such creatures nearby, might a GE roll determine whether or not they are? Bumping into some non-humans could be *lots* of fun... :D
Even if there aren't any of those types around, I will probably go off into the forest sometime soon, and start trying to communicate with the forest critters. Doing a Dr. Doolittle is one way to meet and greet non-humans, after all, and I know that those critters are around...
If you have any other ideas going forward that I haven't thought of, I'm all ears as well. Of course, I realize that you might prefer to surprise me rather than to discuss them with me... :o
"Ah, but it doesn't mean that the text of scripture there does not apply to us, here and now, either, does it? Paul could be praying for us, and could be actively seeking to know what to pray, just waiting for us to tell him. But I do see your point, too. It's worth pondering."
We will settle it that Tuck is not the brightest nor best educated theologian of his age, that Catholicism is not yet quite all the things to which Luther will object in a couple centuries, and that you have each to some degree approached the position of the other without moving much from your own.
That suggests that I should get you to remind me of anything you are doing besides your periodic trips to heal the sick. You are apparently back in camp now; what's your plan for the immediate future?
--M. J. Young
OOC: Things on my immediate to-do list:
- Continue to minister to the physical and spiritual needs around me, both in camp and through periodic healing trips, spreading the true Gospel as I do so
- Develop woodland skills (survival, stealth, woodcraft, archery, quarterstaff) with such worthy instructors nearby
- Develop bardic skills with such a worthy instructor nearby, and see if a bardic musical instrument can be acquired
- Develop skills to detect and communicate (ideally, via telepathy, but I'll take what I can get) with various lifeforms, including non-humans (forest critters, plus any "magical being" legends that may be around :)
O.K., in sequence--
- Continue to minister to the physical and spiritual needs around me, both in camp and through periodic healing trips, spreading the true Gospel as I do so
At the moment there are no sick or injured in the camp, and no one has come seeking help for a few days at least. You are certainly welcome to seek the scattered farm communities and see what the needs are, but at present everyone in camp is preparing for the busy work of ambushing wealthy Normans.
- Develop woodland skills (survival, stealth, woodcraft, archery, quarterstaff) with such worthy instructors nearby
Particularly on the two weapons, do you have a training program in place? The survival you can be picking up by participating in the came work, the stealth you would practice by going on the raids, and the woodcraft is some combination of the two, but your advancement in the weapons will be ruled by what kind of training and practice you are getting. Certainly there are men training men in these, and Robin helps teach the archery, Little John the quarterstaff, if you put yourself into working several hours a week with them.
- Develop bardic skills with such a worthy instructor nearby, and see if a bardic musical instrument can be acquired
Alain a Dale is the only minstrel that frequents the camp, but he's glad to teach you the songs. They mostly carry news--the news that tells in detail what has happened to Richard (which if you like I can try to copy here for you). They paint Richard in a favorable light, John in an unfavorable one. He shows you a bit how to play his instruments, but he does not have spares and does not let you practice them unsupervised.
- Develop skills to detect and communicate (ideally, via telepathy, but I'll take what I can get) with various lifeforms, including non-humans (forest critters, plus any "magical being" legends that may be around
Let's start simple. What kind of skill do you intend to use to locate animals, and what kind of skill would you then use to communicate? I should also ask whether your reference to "various lifeforms" means that you will be attempting to communicate with the trees. Once we've gotten past that, we can explore what you might do to find the magical beings you hope to locate.
--M. J. Young
I don't remember if we have established a regular training program with the weapons yet. I may not have been here long enough yet. I would like to establish one, though.
I haven't been going on the raids. My good name and potential for future ministry among the Normans would be hampered if I did, and I am not necessarily comfortable in robbing others even to give to the poor. Thankfully, I haven't been asked to do so. However, I figure that I can practice stealth and woodcraft as I move through the forest on my periodic healing trips and/or as I help around the camp...
I'd love to hear the details about the news Alain has, and thankfully take whatever opportunities for learning and practicing. I've played many instruments in my life, including guitar, so I suspect that I could pick up lute fairly quickly.
I would love to be able to communicate with anything and everything, whether sentient or not, even whether animate or not. My first world with Kyler had me making telepathic contact with both insects and trees, and even mind swapping with a tree when I botched! :)
One possible approach would be psi-based, taking variations from my experiences in B Movie Monster World. That might suggest some type of Detect Life and/or Detect Thought, plus some type of Tap Language Center and/or Telepathy. However, I don't recall psi doing so well in this universe.
Therefore, a more likely approach would be mag-based, taking variations from my experiences here. That might suggest some type of Detect Life and/or Detect Thought, plus some type of Communicate with Non-Talkers and/or Hear Thoughts.
For "magical beings", I might go for some type of Detect Spirit Powers, if needed, or perhaps some type of True Sight.
Of course, my in-character knowledge of these various approaches is limited, but I do have had some experience in both psi and mag, plus the overview of the bias and skill progressions that I received from the Architect.
Is that enough to get us started? Or do I need to be more specific?
You won't really be practicing stealth traveling through the forest between villages; you do learn some woodcraft in the process.
Your hosts are confused that you want to learn the use of the weapons but don't want to come on the raids. It's because of the incongruity, though--Tuck does not usually go on raids, but he tends the sick and serves as confessor and pastor for the men; but he does not study the weapon use. To this point you appear to be more akin to Tuck, someone who is a holy man helping the sick and wounded, and it thus makes sense that you would not be part of the raids; but it does not then make sense that you would want to learn to fight.
Now, let's start with the detect life and detect thought ideas. Detecting life in the middle of a forest is a bit like detecting water in the middle of the ocean--you're surrounded by it. Detecting "thought" is a more complicated question--are the choices made by animals "thought", or are they somewhere below that? So let's get some better definition on what it is you are seeking and how you distinguish that from all that is similar to it in this area.
--M. J. Young
I'm not a rule expert by any means, but doesn't stealth include silent movement? Will Scarlet gave me my first lesson in stealth when I was making so much noise stomping through the forest soon after my arrival. Wouldn't I therefore be able to put such training into practice whenever I am walking through the forest?
I explain to my confused hosts that I prefer to minister and to heal, and to preserve opportunities to witness even to the Normans, for as sinners they need to be exhorted to turn from their sins and be saved. However, should an occasion arise when they reject the Gospel and respond to me with arms, it is well to have the option of mounting a defense.
For detection, I suppose that I am thinking of something analogous to being in a large crowded room. You hear the overall buzz of conversation. You can discern individual conversations if you focus upon them sufficiently, and direct that focus where you will. You can discern differences in the background noise, such as male versus female, loud versus soft, hostile versus friendly, old versus young, English versus French, complex versus simple, etc., and follow up as you will.
So I think of detecting thought as being able to hear with my mind the thoughts in my vicinity, as if they were being spoken aloud. And if there are many sources, I can direct my attention based upon the distinguishing characteristics I may "hear", and discern the specifics of what is being thought. Thus, I could try to focus upon those portions of the background noise that stick out as being "interesting" based upon whatever characteristic(s) I am currently seeking, such as the most intelligent, or the most hostile, or the most birdlike, or etc.
Does that make sense? :)
I'm not a rule expert by any means, but doesn't stealth include silent movement? Will Scarlet gave me my first lesson in stealth when I was making so much noise stomping through the forest soon after my arrival. Wouldn't I therefore be able to put such training into practice whenever I am walking through the forest?
Well, yes and no. The merry men move quietly leaving little trace of their direction, but they pay for it in speed and comfort. Since you've had a lesson, you could practice the skills when you move outside the immediate campground, such as gathering firewood; but for the long trips between the villages you could not maintain it and travel quickly enough. However, you could do it for parts of the journeys, so we'll allow that you're practicing what you've been taught in that regard.
The men certainly agree that the Normans need to repent and turn from their sins, and that if you're going to preach peace to them you probably ought to have a sword, or at least a good quarterstaff, so perhaps your explanation does make sense.
Your explanation of detecting thought makes good sense, with the caveat that detecting thought and hearing what is being thought are separate concepts. You could combine them into a type of detection/mindreading combination that lets you hear all thought in a given area, but it would be easier to take it as incomprehensible muttering in different kinds of voices, languages, accents, et cetera, that you can distinguish in the ways you've described without being able to understand as part of the process.
That is different from detecting life, which I think you did not address, unless you are regarding them to be the same. I will say that they are not. Whether there are living things that do not think or thinking things that do not live I leave as an unanswered question for the present, particularly because you have not yet defined what you mean by "life".
But assuming that you are satisfied with the concept of detecting thought, I think then the problem I face is knowing which kind of thought you are hoping to discriminate first. However, that might be a more difficult question for us to address than appears on the surface. You have read the minds of people; I do not know what people or what kinds of people, nor do I know whether you have ever read the mind of anything that is not human in the strictest definition of the word. If that is so, then the only kind or "flavor" of thought you can identify as such would be human. That doesn't necessarily mean you couldn't sense kinds of thoughts that were not human; it only means that you would have no point of reference to know whether those thoughts were those of a bear or bird or even perhaps a tree, but only that something was thinking and it seemed different from human thought, and it seemed to be coming from this direction.
And again we have the problem of detecting water in an ocean: if you are in camp and you detect thought, you are surrounded by creatures that think. So I return to the problem of what exactly you are going to do in trying to learn this skill.
--M. J. Young
Your idea (separate detecting and hearing) sounds fair.
I wonder whether or not it is also possible to include some type of visual component, so that the source(s) of thought stand out (a faint glow around the thought source(s), or etc.)?
I would work on this when away from the camp, in the forest alone (whether for far flung firewood, or on my healing journeys).
I would actually be keen to converse with anything and everything non-human (animals, trees, rocks, etc.), but I would probably want to give priority to things that might be rarer and more intelligent, such as fairies. However, I would happily take what I can get in whatever order, and try to find different source types of thinking on subsequent attempts.
I hope to befriend those I converse with, so friendly is better than unalterably hostile.
I wonder whether or not it is also possible to include some type of visual component, so that the source(s) of thought stand out (a faint glow around the thought source(s), or etc.)?
When you were analogizing it to an auditory concept, I was thinking in terms of stereolocation, that you could tell the directional vector toward the thought, no matter what direction it was, and objects would not block it. Now that you have me analogizing it to vision, I'm thinking you can identify the specific object thinking, but only if it is in line of sight and you are looking generally at it. I am comfortable with either concept, but I am not particularly comfortable with combining them without a penalty.
So what is your preference in this regard?
--M. J. Young
If it is to be one or the other, I'll go with auditory. Once I master that, I may at some later time explore combining them. How much of a penalty would that be?
I would consider it combining two skills, probably make it -10, although since in some sense you're really doing one thing two ways I might make it -5. What I see, though, is that the auditory gives you the advantage that it is full spherical with a directional sense not limited by line of sight combined with the disadvantage that you can't be certain whether the first object you see is what is thinking or whether the thinker is beyond it, while the visual gives you the advantage that you can identify the thinker quite specifically and immediately, but the disadvantage that you have to be looking in the right general direction and have no obstacles. If I allow them to be combined, then you eliminate all the limitations, really--you can "hear" that something is thinking in "that direction", and turn that way, and either you will see it immediately or you will know that it must be hidden behind (or inside) something else. It sort of eliminates the "flavor" of psionic detection, which either has you turning and scanning to find what you seek (the visual) or gives you a vague directional sense (the auditory).
It does not "have to be" one or the other, certainly. If you'll take the -10 penalty I'll roll it as having both components. If you'll pick one, I'll roll it straight.
--M. J. Young
OOC: I'll make my first attempt as auditory only. If that fails, then I'll try visual only. If that fails, then I'll try both. :)
You head out into the woods, traveling some distance from the camp alone, and then attempt to "hear" the thoughts around you. You hear nothing.
You sit and think for a while about how you might do this, and decide that it might be easier to see thinking than to hear it, so you close your eyes, focus on what you know about thought from mind reading, and then open them again.
There is a blue glow--no, not blue, purple, no, that's not right either, it's a color unlike anything you can process with your eyes. It is very faint around the trees and shrubs, and slightly brighter in little specks that are apparently insects, and brighter yet in the two larger animals that stand out slightly--a bird on a branch above you and a squirrel on the exterior of a nearby tree.
--M. J. Young
I attempt to Read Thoughts of the bird. If I'm not successful, I attempt to Focus, and if Focused then try to Read Thoughts of the bird again.
After this, I attempt to Tap Language Center of the bird, and then see if I can converse with it. If I'm not successful, I attempt to Focus, and if Focused then try to Tap Language Center of the bird again... :)
You attempt to read what the bird is thinking, and for a moment you have a glimmer that feels almost like a connection, and then it is gone. You try to focus, and try again, but you don't recapture that.
Shifting to the language center tap, you suddenly find that you understand what the bird is saying. It is saying "this is my home, stay away." You could probably say something to it. How good are you at whistling, or will you attempt to sing it? (What is your vocal range--e.g., baritone, tenor, countertenor?)
--M. J. Young
My whistling is mediocre, but my singing is good, and I possess perfect pitch. I have been everything from Bass II to Tenor I, but I don't really go lower than Bass I. I sing Tenor I these days, with a well-blended falsetto that can hit high notes with ease and accuracy.
I slowly take a reassuring step away from bird and home.
"Peace be unto you, friend. I am John. May we be friends?"
"I seek the fair folk. Do you know how I may find them?"
The bird's language does not contain a word for "friend". There is a word that is closer to "neighbor", which means a creature that lives nearby who is neither a threat nor a food source and therefore irrelevant, and another that clearly means "mate", and another for "offspring", and another for "parent", and another for "sibling". Pick one, or find a way to ask without using that word.
In giving it your name, are you pronouncing it as "John" or are you translating it, and if you are translating it what meaning are you using for it?
It does not understand your reference to the white creatures.
--M. J. Young
As I sift through the available vocabulary, I modify my intended greeting to match.
"Peace be unto you, neighbor. Do you know what other creatures live nearby?"
"Peace to you, neighbor. There are some smaller birds in nearby trees that are no threat to me and of no interest. I worry about the nut-gatherers, because they are not above killing eggs. Sometimes larger fur creatures come through, and sometimes uprights like you, and not all of these are safe, but none can fly and my nest is high enough that I do not fear the dangerous ones climbing to it."
--M. J. Young
OOC: As I sift through available vocabulary, does it have any concept of God?
-=-
After the conversation with the bird eventually ends, I ponder again that first rider I saw traveling through Sherwood, and his thoughts that the LORD graciously revealed to me. And I ponder how I was able to take his thoughts about "bandits" and "robbing hood", and how I was able to present them to the LORD, and how I graciously was given a vision of Robin Hood, and even eventually transported to him.
And I ponder his thoughts about the magical beings in the wood as well...
And, in a manner similar to how I prayed before, I petition the LORD for a vision of these "magical beings"...
I believe that this was M7@2 Magical Clairsentience? The previous use was here... :)
There does seem to be a concept of "ancestor" that extends beyond the avian to the creator of avians, something of the same way "father" is used of "God", a sort of "The Ancestor" conception. It is nowhere near as theological as that, but the bird has a recognition of a race-creator.
Ah, the magical beings that a traveler believed haunted the forest. Clarify this for me: are you trying to perceive magical beings that he believes inhabit the forest, or magical beings that actually do? I note that the prayer involved gave a specific description of a specific individual you wished to see, but the description you give is going to have a significant impact on what result you get.
--M. J. Young
"Praise be to our Creator. How long have you been here?"
I don't know how long I will have this connection to the bird, so I do my best to telepathically explore as much vocabulary as possible, in the hopes that my perfect memory will help me to be able to converse with birds in the future...
-=-
I am trying to perceive magical beings that actually do inhabit this forest. In the same way that the traveler's thoughts about "bandits" and "robbing hood" led me to seek the actual leader of the actual bandits that inhabit this forest, the traveler's thoughts about "magical beings" lead me to seek the actual magical beings that inhabit this forest. After all, I seek to meet and greet and befriend and witness to actual inhabitants, not non-existent figments of someone's imagination... :)
Concerning "exploring" the vocabulary, my thinking is that 1) you must want to say something specific to have any contact with the appropriate words and 2) you must actually say it to hear them. By analogy, if you're thinking of explaining something to someone, you think conceptually; it is not until you actually speak it or write it) that you come up words like "eschatology" or "cloud server", because your knowledge of language is responsive to your need to communicate specific ideas. Thus if you are thinking about what to say to the bird, you will have a feeling for what it is possible to say, but you won't know the words themselves without speaking them (or singing them, in this case).
You pray your prayer, and suddenly, in the woods a few feet away, you see a small man-like creature, less than two feet tall, dressed in leaves, dark hair and eyes and a pug nose, startled that you have noticed him.
--M. J. Young
OK, I'll continue the conversation until my language tap runs out.
"Praise be to our Creator. How long have you been here?"
-=-
I blink as I see the creature, and give a friendly nod of greeting.
Then, without making any threatening moves, I begin to sing. Quietly at first, hoping to avoid scaring him away, and hoping to attract him with the music... and the lyrics...
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.
I give another quiet friendly nod.
"Peace be unto you, friend. Well met. I am John, though some call me Oak. What is your name?"
"Praise be to our Creator. How long have you been here?"
"All day. Well, I did go looking for food a bit earlier, but I came back."
*****
"Rather hasty of you, to be givin' your name so freely to strangers. As for me, call me dimwit and slowfoot, which is what they're sure to call me when they find I was seen by a human. Still don't know how you managed to do that."
--M. J. Young
"Do you travel far when the seasons change, and the leaves begin to fall? What other places have you seen, and what are they like?"
-=-
"Ah, my seeing you was not by my own might or power, but by the Spirit of the LORD my God. For I have been traveling about the forest, meeting and greeting folks, and ministering to their needs as best as I can. And I heard rumors of other folk dwelling here, and came seeking to meet and greet... and found you."
"Are any of your folk sick? I would be happy to pray for them, if you wish. The LORD has been very gracious, and has healed many of the nearby sick human folk recently."
"Do you or your people have any interesting stories or songs? As you may have seen, I have a heart for good songs and stories, and would love to hear more."
"Oh, yes, I follow the sun when it takes the warmth away, but come back when it grows too hot. There are places where the lakes are vast and wild, and do not quench the thirst. There are different trees beyond that, and it is not so easy to build a nest; it is easier to have young here in these forests."
*****
Are any of your folk sick?
"Sick? Oh, that thing where bodies stop working right because other creatures overwhelm them. No, we don't get sick, thanks all the same. Anyway, why would the gods of men care about us?"
Do you or your people have any interesting stories or songs?
"Aye, that we have; but we're not so keen on sharing with the humans, if you don't mind me saying. Our stories and songs are our own, and what would it mean to you if Beren Briarfoot went on a great quest to win the love of Princess Alyna, who loved him anyway, and to prove that he was worthy of her hand, when he didn't know that he was actually the rightful heir to the throne, his uncle having never told him that his father had been the king? It's not your history."
--M. J. Young
"Do you flock together with others, or only with your mate and offspring?"
-=-
"The LORD God Almighty created all things. And it is written, 'All thy works shall praise thee, O LORD', and 'For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.'"
"Do you know anything about the LORD? What have you heard?"
-=-
I smile warmly.
"I don't mind. I know well that I am still but a stranger, and not of your folk. But I would be keen to learn of you all, and to call you friends."
"Are there bards among you? I am something of a bard, though I have much to learn, and stories and songs of your people would mean much to me. A worthy history should not be forgotten, but passed on from people to people, and from generation to generation."
"Besides, are you not also curious about others? I was not in your history until a few minutes ago, yet was I not interesting enough for you to want to observe and learn something of?"
I finish with a good natured twinkle in my eye...
"Flock? I do not understand what you mean. The paths get crowded when all are going the same way."
"I know that the creator of birds is great and deserves to be praised for giving us all this world to enjoy."
*****
"Curious about humans? The only thing that interests me about humans is how to stay out of their sight, which is usually a lot simpler than this. You're short-lived and superstitious creatures, and many a poor fellow has been caught never to be seen again, or to have escaped with harrowing stories of how their captors demanded wishes, or pots of gold, or some such nonsense. And what, pray tell, would you be demanding of me?"
--M. J. Young
"Do you ever converse with other kinds of birds, or are you unable to understand their speech? Can you converse with non-avians?"
-=-
I listen to his words with increasing dismay.
"I demand nothing of you, though I would welcome your friendship. But I had no idea your people have been suffering at the hands of mine. From my heart, I am sorry."
I ponder thoughtfully.
"I cannot undo what has passed, but perhaps I can help now. If many have been caught, never to be seen again, would you have me seek them? If any are still alive, I could search for them, and perhaps find them, as I was able to find you. And, if any could be rescued, I could exert myself to try to free them... if your people would have me make the attempt."
"Why would I converse with other kinds of birds? It's about territory, mating, food. If a bird is dangerous I hide, if it's non-competing I ignore it, and if it competes I tell it to leave."
*****
"Seek them? Have you some power to travel to the afterlife and return?" There is some disdain in his tone. "No, stranger; they're dead, and that's the sure of it. It only takes so much torture trying to get a pot of gold or a granted wish or some such nonsense before it's too much and we expire. Our crime is that we aren't what your people want us to be, and for that we are executed."
--M. J. Young