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[blackfire]

// うちは

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XIMILIA

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[bindsthedead]

I do not think she would propose it as openly and consistently as she does if it were a mere idle hope, or she had no idea how to implement it.

But nothing is certain when the orbs are involved, or a war is brewing. And perhaps it is because this world is so unlike my own, but my necromancy is essentially useless in Sedorum- souls are effectively the same as the living, and I cannot access this 'purgatory' people speak of.

It may be different, when the war moves to Giva though.

[blackfire]

Perhaps.

Have you played chess, Sabriel-san?

[bindsthedead]

Not often, but I am familiar with the rules.

[blackfire]

Do you know the pieces well enough to know which you would be represented by on a board?

[bindsthedead]

I know what they do, but that would depend on who was playing, wouldn't it?

But not the king, and aside from him, all pieces are ultimately disposable.

[blackfire]

From the player's perspective, at least.

Less so the pieces themselves.

[bindsthedead]

True enough. And yet the pieces move anyway, to capture the king.

[blackfire]

And a king cannot win a game alone.

（ which means the pieces are only disposable insofar as they enable victory. a king alone on a board can at best only ever be a stalemate. ）

I ask, because the nature of this conflict makes me feel as if we are all being manipulated by some broader design.

（ he doesn't mean, necessarily, that he thinks it's the case here — just that there are elements of that nature in play. ）

[bindsthedead]

More so than any other mission?

There are oddities though- like our groups being separated, unable to communicate. And two orbs this time.

And it may be because this world is so different from my own, but these afterlives do not feel like a natural thing.

[Which is part of what inclines Sabriel to aid Entr'i in her goals, aside from genuine outrage at the unfairness of it all.]

[blackfire]

Natural in what way?

[bindsthedead]

Paying to have your sins absolved strikes me as extremely strange. Some ritual of atonement would not be entirely out of the question, but absolution through money seems like a very human idea, and I would not expect the forces governing death and what happens after to adhere so closely to human expectations.

Death, in my experience, involves the inexplicable and unknown, following arbitrary rules that do not follow human reason.

[blackfire]

I have considered the possibility that the realm exists as a projection — or a reflection — of what the residents of Giva expect of their afterlife.

Depending on the orb's influence, it is difficult to say.

[bindsthedead]

Perhaps- although does this mean that if belief in Giva changed, both realms would be altered? And the people display perceptible thought and emotion, according to Blue.

We have seen the orbs tamper with the forces of life and death before, just not to this extent. Unfortunately the rulers of both Taeum and Sedorum refuse to show their faces.

[And if anyone in either realm knows the truth, it's them.]

[blackfire]

If I am correct, the place was very likely static from its inception onward. I do not believe it can be changed through evolving beliefs — likely only action from the orbs.

Which I suppose may occur as a result of Entri'i's actions, if it goes according to her plan.

[bindsthedead]

You're probably right- we don't have full records, but as far back as anyone can recall, the status quo was firmly in place.

I hope it does.

[blackfire]

I hope that you are right in that she is trustworthy.

[bindsthedead]

Everything I've seen indicates that she is. Even the ones planning to betray her believe her intentions are what she says they are.

[blackfire]

We shall see.