Time travel and lousy life choices

[una_persson]

Who: Una Persson and OPEN (with threads for Niko and Niles)
What: Life in Blackstaff
Where: Various places; see threadstarters, or feel free to start your own
When: In the week or so after the witch den expeditions and Una's punitive assignment
Warnings: TBD

Comments

[truth_is_the_enemy]

He smiled, even though Una's answer wasn't terribly optimistic.

"But it's possible. And that's all I need to know. I can be very patient. Even if it takes years, or longer, I can wait."

He'd been following Connor Lang since Niles was fifteen years old. Even if it took another twenty five years to save him, it would be worth it. Anything for the opportunity for him to tell Connor "It'll be all right." And then Connor will love him. And Amanda will love him, too, for saving Connor.

[una_persson]

"Fair enough. I simply want you to keep your expectations realistic; that's all."

Had she quite known the extent of Niles's madness, she might not have even granted him that much of a glimmer. Hope can be a fine thing, but sometimes it can be positively dangerous.

[truth_is_the_enemy]

"Understood. And thank you for your honesty on the matter."

He appreciated someone who, presented with a question on something that was very difficult and, perhaps, shouldn't be done (at least not without a great deal of thought and preparation and skill before hand) nevertheless didn't opt to take the easy way out and say that it couldn't be done.

"So, on a somewhat more lighthearted subject, tell me about the most exciting place you've ever travelled."

[una_persson]

"How do you define exciting?" she replied, smiling. "I've been known to find diplomatic relations positively thrilling, but that's a pathology in some people's eyes." She leaned back in her chair, looking up at the ceiling. "The early twentieth century—now, there's an exciting time. Perhaps not in the mundane details of the day-to-day living, but you have to admit, nothing was the same after that." She steepled her fingers and tapped them against each other. "On the other end of the spectrum, there's also the End of Time. Which I suppose is exciting, and also rather fun."

[truth_is_the_enemy]

"Before my ignominious exile to the Dakota Reaches, I was aiming for an ambassadorial position, so you may assume that I'm grievously afflicted with that particular pathology."

He put a finger to his lips as he thought about the era she mentioned.

"Old empires falling, new empires rising. Boundaries redrawn. Yes, I can see how that would be very interesting to witness. But what's this about the End of Time? I didn't think time had an end."

[una_persson]

"I'm glad you understand." A wry smile.

"Technically, no, Time doesn't end. But worlds do, and universes. They call it the End of Time because—well, it's the end of their Time, a little last burst of creativity right before the heat death of the universe—of that one universe. There aren't that many people left on Earth then, and those who are left draw on the power of the Earth's cities to fuel their creations—they live for art and sensation. You might call them decadent and I suppose they are, but I rather like them."

with the right journal this time

[truth_is_the_enemy]

"It sounds like a fun party. Aside from the universe ending. That would put a bit of a damper on the end of the evening. 'So long, see you next week, oh no I won't because neither of us will exist any more.' Under the circumstances I can't blame them for wanting to get what enjoyment they can out of life while they have it."

[una_persson]

"True. Though none of them ever really get that morbid about it. Well, except for the one or two who like to define themselves by their unfashionable angst. Or their highly fashionable feelings of Sturm und Drang." She smiled a little, thinking of the gloomy Mongrove and the spectacularly gothic Werther de Goethe. "There are stories I could tell you—well, actually, you might be able to read them at some point, if I can ever get the books in. A good friend of mine wrote a series of novels based on the stories I told him about the End of Time. They're rather good, actually."

[truth_is_the_enemy]

"It would be my pleasure to read them. We were able to save books better than we could save..." He pointed at her music device and had to reach into his mind to remember the name again. "...mp3 players. But they're still more difficult to come by and more expensive than they once were. And what you can find sometimes depends on what happened to be in wide circulation when the war hit, not what's good. So if you want a copy of Fifty Shades of Grey you're in luck, but if you want a complete set of Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire you have to pay big for it."

[una_persson]

"Fifty what? No, I probably don't want to know, do I? But I'm not surprised. Paper has a way of lingering, whereas the digital—one power surge or electromagnetic pulse and there's half the Sibylline Books, up in smoke." She shook her head. "Well, all kinds of things make their way here eventually, either through entirely aboveboard channels or ... otherwise, so if they happen to turn up, I'll be sure to let you know."

[truth_is_the_enemy]

"It's something to do with a dull weekend," he said of Fifty Shades of Grey. "But afterwards you have the mental equivalent of feeling like you've just forced half a dozen terrible greasy cheeseburgers down your throat. Your friend's books sound like a much more pleasant prospect."

[una_persson]

"Ah, trash fiction." She grinned. "A little of that goes a very long way. Mike's written his share, of course—he comes from an age where you could make a pretty good living doing it. But he always had more talent than that. Runs in his family, I believe."