Thus far, the missions have succeeded without major casualties. However, this opens us to overconfidence when approaching the ones that follow. We must be vigilant against our own complacency.
No. But there are enough soldiers and warriors among us that I do not think we will be completely unequipped when our luck turns.
[But it will be hard on them, Sabriel thinks, especially those unused to death.]
The first two missions were close enough that I think most people were grateful just to survive, and left all of us aware of our shortcomings. This one... I worry, a little if it might make some overconfident when it comes to trying to bargain with the orb.
As for casualties... [Sabriel sighs, thinking of Jacinth and her rabbit, and suddenly very, very grateful no one knows the full extent of her necromantic abilities, and will probably not ask her to try to resurrect a human.
She's not even sure if it would work or not, she's just fairly certain that even if she could, she shouldn't.]
Everyone and everything has a time to die. And most here have had some significant experience with death and loss, tied to our regrets or not.
（ he makes a soft noise of confirmation, to be taken however she wishes it. he will neither confirm nor deny his experience with significant death and loss, thank u. ）
What do you imagine failing one of these missions might look like?
Any of the crew dying would be a large blow to morale, particularly the first time it happened.
[After that... People can get used to death, to some extent. Although given how crewmembers come and go, it seems likely that there will always be someone that kind of loss is new to.]
Another issue would be encountering a situation where the orb cannot be recovered without an innocent dying- not put at risk- dying for sure. Or where striking a bargain with an orb involves acts too vile for anyone to fulfill, or even if one was willing, for the rest of the crew to allow them to do so.
（ it is as he suspected, then. he takes another sip of his tea, then curls his hand around the cup. his nailpolish is chipped and cracked, an odd contrast to the quality of the good china. ）
I concur.
（ he has a few other scenarios that play out poorly in his mind, but he would rather not give her the added insight as to how his mind functions, and so keeps them to himself. ）
People here are eager to bond amongst themselves. It is both strength and weakness in these situations.
[Sabriel notices the chips, and wonders, faintly, if she should requisition more nail polish from Viveca. She'd never thought to inquire about if cosmetics came with the supply drops, lacking any interest in such things herself.]
We need trust and cooperation in order to succeed in our mission. Caring about each other... it's natural for that to follow as we learn to trust each other and work together. But that also means loss will hit all the harder.
[And if that trust is misplaced... Sabriel shoves that thought aside. Even if people didn't always agree, their shared mission meant their ultimate goal was the same, and cooperation was in everyone's best interest.]
（ nothing she says is untrue — it is the way of the world. even he, for whom emotions were difficult, still woke the sharingan with tenma's death. he is not... immune, to caring about his comrades.
he had little regard for the rest of the akatsuki, but even kisame — ）
Is that why you have chosen to teach them magic?
（ even if he could teach others ninjutsu — he does not think he would. ）
Part of it, yes. I want people to be able to defend themselves against the supernatural, given how every mission so far has involved it to some extent, and having more magic users will improve our chances of success, but also- many of the most powerful spells are most easily cast by a group of Charter mages, so if they prove necessary...
[Sabriel takes another sip of her tea, and grabs a biscuit.]
We'll be in a better situation if there's more of us.
（ the ward he performed was meant for four people. the uchiha didn't intend for anyone to cast it as he had when they passed down the knowledge through the years. yet he cannot help but think how much stronger it would have been if shisui had been at his side. ）
Do you not worry about what may happen if they return to their worlds with this power?
I trust all of my students not to abuse what I teach them. Besides- none of them know how to perform the rite of baptism, so magic is unlikely to spread beyond them.
[And perhaps she trusts too easily- Sabriel's sure Mogget would say that of her- but given the circumstances, what choice to they truly have?
But the last mission raised a different, worrying question- what if having magic leads someone to abuse them.]
（ he lifts the cup for another sip, and sets it back down with care. sometimes, she seems much older than her years in a way he recognizes — and others, like now, she seems very much a child. yet, he does not wish to give censure, simply orient her attention on something it does not seem she has given thought to. and he understands, of course, that their immediate goals are the ones on which they must focus. but the consequences of their choices now will ripple outwards. ）
We are all here out of a selfish desire that speaks to the capacity to do a great many things in pursuit of something we want. I am not saying do not trust your students — only, be aware that they may not always be the people they are now, and you are running the risk of entirely changing the status quo of their worlds by teaching them magic, regardless of their ability to duplicate it or not. Men have deluded themselves into believing their own divinity with less.
（ he says it gently, or at least as gently as he is able. it has never come easily to him with others. ）
Given the nature of most of our regrets, altering things from their previous path is going to happen anyway.
[It's not dismissive, though, Sabriel is clearly considering what he says.]
I understand what you're saying though. That having a power no one else does... can lead you to think it has more meaning, that you have more authority, than anyone else. Or to convince yourself that power grants wisdom.
To answer your question- I cannot. Normally, the only means I know of for someone to lose their connection to the Charter is by being corrupted by- and drawing upon- Free magic.
Only if we succeed in our goal. For those that are sent home early — via these glitches with the orb, or from changing their minds — their path may not be altered at all, save by what they come to know here. If their regret was powerful enough to bring them here, but goes unrealized —
（ they may easily decide that charter magic could hold the answers for them, the way orochimaru turned his eye towards immortality.
after a moment, he reaches for a biscuit, which he turns over in his palm once before deciding to sample it. whatever he thinks of it doesn't show on his face — no clear indicators of pleasure or dislike, and then he sets it gingerly on the side of his tea saucer. ）
I understand the desire to ensure your allies have some way to protect themselves, especially those of them that do not come from worlds where these are common abilities. But it is a tremendous responsibility to shoulder.
（ not that she will have any way to know, if something goes awry. but sabriel, for all her pragmatism and the steel in her spine, is a gentle girl. the not-knowing may torture her just as surely as if those abilities were used cruelly before her eyes. ）
They might try to use Charter magic to fulfill it. Or try to use it as a springboard into darker abilities, if the Charter cannot give them what they wish.
[There is no Charter magic to revive the dead, after all, for all that it can bring someone back from the brink. Although if their worlds truly lack magic, that may not be an option.. but that still wouldn't stop them from abusing what she taught them.
And even if none of her students are what Sabriel would consider careless... two of them are soldiers- former, in one case- who she would fully expect to use what she taught if they got into a fight. Would she always agree what cause they used it in pursuit of? Is it even her place to object?]
Both for me and for them. I will keep your words in mind.
It is the country that lies to the south of the Old Kingdom, separated from it by the Wall. Magic really only exists in the northern part of it, but even there... many like to pretend it doesn't exist.
[Well, they'll pretend up until it isn't possible, and then they're just afraid.]
It's... safer than in the Old Kingdom, so father sent me to school there. Wyverley college is a girl's school near the Wall that teaches its students magic.
If anyone can learn Charter Magic, how does one determine candidates for it?
( a world like she describes sounds... odd, as if it doesn't follow the logic of his own. she has painted a story that speaks to danger and her own role in combating it — are its citizens so ignorant, or is it that they've grown accustomed to peace that has allowed them to divorce themselves from the unpleasant things done to ensure it? )
Well, mostly that you got your parents' permission for it. Which meant that most of the students came from families that lived near the Wall- many of them descended from Old Kingdom immigrants. Most of them had already been baptized by their families before they entered the school.
[Sabriel takes another sip of her tea.]
Of course, the school isn't the only source of Charter Mages in Ancelstierre. Aside from the odd independent practitioner, there's also the Crossing Point Scouts- they're soldiers who serve at the Wall, and all of them are Charter mages too, but again- it's not officially acknowledged.
[After all, anything beyond local administration happened far enough south that magic didn't exist. So even if you weren't in denial, it was often simpler to lie to people, rather than try to convince them otherwise.]
No, but it's possible to devise new spells by coming up with new combinations of existing marks... and the number of Charter marks is probably infinite, given that the Charter has no beginning or end.
[He's fishing for information, Sabriel can tell that much. So she casts out a line of her own in return.]
Are those who can use magic- sorry, chakra- common where you come from?
（ wow, hdu smack the nosy infomodder with a newspaper, sabriel. but, he supposes that turnabout is fair play, and so — ）
It depends on what you mean by 'use'. Every human in my world has chakra, it's necessary for life and its exhaustion is fatal, its use is the same as the circulatory or nervous systems. However, being able to mold chakra — that is, use it for ninjutsu — is considerably more rare. It can be passed down by bloodlines, or be the result of a genetic mutation.
I see. How are those who can viewed by those who cannot?
[Is it like in the Old Kingdom, where it's seen as a skill like any other, or was their tension between them? Itachi's concern at her passing on her knowledge suggested that might be the case.]
（ that question is honestly not something he has put a considerable effort towards unpacking in his own world. itachi can count the times he's had significant interaction with civilians on one hand, and it has never occurred to him to view them poorly for what they cannot do. they cannot help their birth any more than he could help being an uchiha. ）
It depends very much on the country of one's birth. In my country, it is considered a shinobi's duty to protect those that cannot protect themselves. Those that cannot perform ninjutsu are not looked down upon, as they often perform services vital to the country's economic strength. A prosperous Hidden Village — that is to say, a centralized shinobi outpost — is reliant on its civilian population for food, supplies, building materials, and the civilians rely on the shinobi in times of war or strife to shield them from their enemies.
（ the question about his family is not unexpected — he was aware that by speaking as he did he may open that avenue, so his answer is already prepared and delivered calmly, ）
My family has produced many notable shinobi, going back to the founding of our village.
I see. So everyone who can mold chakra is expected to be a shinobi?
[It would explain part of his reaction to finding out about the situation with Aureliah. If he had grown up with the expectation that being born with power included an expectation to service... Well, her objections might have seemed strange.]
It depends very much on whether or not we are presently at war, or whether we are replenishing our ranks after a conflict to ensure we do not appear weak before the other nations. When those conditions are in place, there is an expectation of service regardless of one's wishes. When we are in an established peacetime, there is more flexibility. However, everyone who can mold chakra is expected to attend the academy to learn the fundamental basics, otherwise they are potentially a danger to themselves and others if they do not have control.
（ truthfully, he can envision no other life but that. ）
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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（ after a moment: ）
Thus far, the missions have succeeded without major casualties. However, this opens us to overconfidence when approaching the ones that follow. We must be vigilant against our own complacency.
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[But it will be hard on them, Sabriel thinks, especially those unused to death.]
The first two missions were close enough that I think most people were grateful just to survive, and left all of us aware of our shortcomings. This one... I worry, a little if it might make some overconfident when it comes to trying to bargain with the orb.
As for casualties... [Sabriel sighs, thinking of Jacinth and her rabbit, and suddenly very, very grateful no one knows the full extent of her necromantic abilities, and will probably not ask her to try to resurrect a human.
She's not even sure if it would work or not, she's just fairly certain that even if she could, she shouldn't.]
Everyone and everything has a time to die. And most here have had some significant experience with death and loss, tied to our regrets or not.
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What do you imagine failing one of these missions might look like?
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[After that... People can get used to death, to some extent. Although given how crewmembers come and go, it seems likely that there will always be someone that kind of loss is new to.]
Another issue would be encountering a situation where the orb cannot be recovered without an innocent dying- not put at risk- dying for sure. Or where striking a bargain with an orb involves acts too vile for anyone to fulfill, or even if one was willing, for the rest of the crew to allow them to do so.
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I concur.
（ he has a few other scenarios that play out poorly in his mind, but he would rather not give her the added insight as to how his mind functions, and so keeps them to himself. ）
People here are eager to bond amongst themselves. It is both strength and weakness in these situations.
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We need trust and cooperation in order to succeed in our mission. Caring about each other... it's natural for that to follow as we learn to trust each other and work together. But that also means loss will hit all the harder.
[And if that trust is misplaced... Sabriel shoves that thought aside. Even if people didn't always agree, their shared mission meant their ultimate goal was the same, and cooperation was in everyone's best interest.]
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（ nothing she says is untrue — it is the way of the world. even he, for whom emotions were difficult, still woke the sharingan with tenma's death. he is not... immune, to caring about his comrades.
he had little regard for the rest of the akatsuki, but even kisame — ）
Is that why you have chosen to teach them magic?
（ even if he could teach others ninjutsu — he does not think he would. ）
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[Sabriel takes another sip of her tea, and grabs a biscuit.]
We'll be in a better situation if there's more of us.
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（ the ward he performed was meant for four people. the uchiha didn't intend for anyone to cast it as he had when they passed down the knowledge through the years. yet he cannot help but think how much stronger it would have been if shisui had been at his side. ）
Do you not worry about what may happen if they return to their worlds with this power?
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[And perhaps she trusts too easily- Sabriel's sure Mogget would say that of her- but given the circumstances, what choice to they truly have?
But the last mission raised a different, worrying question- what if having magic leads someone to abuse them.]
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We are all here out of a selfish desire that speaks to the capacity to do a great many things in pursuit of something we want. I am not saying do not trust your students — only, be aware that they may not always be the people they are now, and you are running the risk of entirely changing the status quo of their worlds by teaching them magic, regardless of their ability to duplicate it or not. Men have deluded themselves into believing their own divinity with less.
（ he says it gently, or at least as gently as he is able. it has never come easily to him with others. ）
Can you revoke the baptism?
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[It's not dismissive, though, Sabriel is clearly considering what he says.]
I understand what you're saying though. That having a power no one else does... can lead you to think it has more meaning, that you have more authority, than anyone else. Or to convince yourself that power grants wisdom.
To answer your question- I cannot. Normally, the only means I know of for someone to lose their connection to the Charter is by being corrupted by- and drawing upon- Free magic.
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（ they may easily decide that charter magic could hold the answers for them, the way orochimaru turned his eye towards immortality.
after a moment, he reaches for a biscuit, which he turns over in his palm once before deciding to sample it. whatever he thinks of it doesn't show on his face — no clear indicators of pleasure or dislike, and then he sets it gingerly on the side of his tea saucer. ）
I understand the desire to ensure your allies have some way to protect themselves, especially those of them that do not come from worlds where these are common abilities. But it is a tremendous responsibility to shoulder.
（ not that she will have any way to know, if something goes awry. but sabriel, for all her pragmatism and the steel in her spine, is a gentle girl. the not-knowing may torture her just as surely as if those abilities were used cruelly before her eyes. ）
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[There is no Charter magic to revive the dead, after all, for all that it can bring someone back from the brink. Although if their worlds truly lack magic, that may not be an option.. but that still wouldn't stop them from abusing what she taught them.
And even if none of her students are what Sabriel would consider careless... two of them are soldiers- former, in one case- who she would fully expect to use what she taught if they got into a fight. Would she always agree what cause they used it in pursuit of? Is it even her place to object?]
Both for me and for them. I will keep your words in mind.
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（ it is a knife's edge. on one side, people may suffer or die for a lack of magic while they are serving on the ximilia itself. and on the other...
it is as she said. he inclines his head, and breaks another piece off that biscuit to chew it thoughtfully. ）
Tell me more of this... Ancelstierre.
（ that is said with care, the attention to its proper pronunciation evident. ）
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[Well, they'll pretend up until it isn't possible, and then they're just afraid.]
It's... safer than in the Old Kingdom, so father sent me to school there. Wyverley college is a girl's school near the Wall that teaches its students magic.
excuse me dw I was not done
( a world like she describes sounds... odd, as if it doesn't follow the logic of his own. she has painted a story that speaks to danger and her own role in combating it — are its citizens so ignorant, or is it that they've grown accustomed to peace that has allowed them to divorce themselves from the unpleasant things done to ensure it? )
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[Sabriel takes another sip of her tea.]
Of course, the school isn't the only source of Charter Mages in Ancelstierre. Aside from the odd independent practitioner, there's also the Crossing Point Scouts- they're soldiers who serve at the Wall, and all of them are Charter mages too, but again- it's not officially acknowledged.
[After all, anything beyond local administration happened far enough south that magic didn't exist. So even if you weren't in denial, it was often simpler to lie to people, rather than try to convince them otherwise.]
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Can one invent Charter Marks of their own?
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[He's fishing for information, Sabriel can tell that much. So she casts out a line of her own in return.]
Are those who can use magic- sorry, chakra- common where you come from?
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It depends on what you mean by 'use'. Every human in my world has chakra, it's necessary for life and its exhaustion is fatal, its use is the same as the circulatory or nervous systems. However, being able to mold chakra — that is, use it for ninjutsu — is considerably more rare. It can be passed down by bloodlines, or be the result of a genetic mutation.
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[Is it like in the Old Kingdom, where it's seen as a skill like any other, or was their tension between them? Itachi's concern at her passing on her knowledge suggested that might be the case.]
Is it something the rest of your family can use?
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It depends very much on the country of one's birth. In my country, it is considered a shinobi's duty to protect those that cannot protect themselves. Those that cannot perform ninjutsu are not looked down upon, as they often perform services vital to the country's economic strength. A prosperous Hidden Village — that is to say, a centralized shinobi outpost — is reliant on its civilian population for food, supplies, building materials, and the civilians rely on the shinobi in times of war or strife to shield them from their enemies.
（ the question about his family is not unexpected — he was aware that by speaking as he did he may open that avenue, so his answer is already prepared and delivered calmly, ）
My family has produced many notable shinobi, going back to the founding of our village.
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[It would explain part of his reaction to finding out about the situation with Aureliah. If he had grown up with the expectation that being born with power included an expectation to service... Well, her objections might have seemed strange.]
And... what about when there isn't war?
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（ truthfully, he can envision no other life but that. ）
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