Sophia - Book Part 2

Angelique of the Many Names

So many names, yet, this is the one I have liked the best. Shape Dancer is good, but I am not the only one within these walls with that distinction. Mereret, my birth name, but she seems so long ago, and so much more confused about what she had become. Angelique knows and in it is empowered.

Angelique for Shan, the demon girl

I presume to speak for my lover, for words are not her strength. But it matters not. She has so many strengths that this small failing is inconsequential to her being. She muses, behind those troubled eyes, about her past and her future. We have helped to restore her from the abuses she has suffered, yet we cannot undo them. I love her more than my long life, yet, even that is not always enough to keep the demons from chasing her.

Aztol. I will kill him if I see him, assuming Shandi doesn't get to him first. What he did to her, what he did to so many, cannot be forgiven. And still, he threatens even more, for he has great power as well. His killing will be hard, but I will see it achieved, even if it requires my ending.

But this section is supposed to be about Shan. I promise the rest of it will be her thoughts instead of mine.

Mom told me, after Angelique and the others saw me home. I always knew he was not Father, even as he tried to act the part. Poor, sad little man, hiding in the shadows, trying to play god, and failing so miserably. He wanted to bring it all back, his Golden Time. My moms have explained what those times were like. They may have been good, but they were never what he remembers. The times now are no worse. In many ways, they are better, he just cannot see.

Irena, how do I speak of her? With her friends she rescued me, gave me hope, and drove my demons back enough for me to live again. She is the god my self-professed father wanted to be. He should thank the universe he never was. Irena has aged, even though she is ageless. We are fighting so many battles on so many fronts. I hope her latest plan will let her be happy again.

And Aztol, I should hate him more for what he did. I must thank him though, for without his tricks I would never have found true friends or my lover. I would still be wrapped in cotton and sitting on the high shelf, waiting for my "father" to take me down and look at me. Maybe not. Maybe my mothers would have freed me and saved some trouble. I will never know.

Krystal

What does one say in something like this? I have lived, I live still, and adventure awaits. What more is there that is important?

Darina

How strange it all is. I followed Irena because she fascinated me. Maybe there will be more to say later.

M'Hriss

I am glad I stayed when Margla offered me freedom. I can tell her story now. Let the multi-verse know she was more than just the 'evil old monster' in the magic building. Although, the few that came seeking knowledge can tell this as well.

I hope Klktzash is happy in her new life. I do miss her. She remembered her life before the Hut. That is something I do not, thankfully. Many of my kind are vile, evil, and cruel. I was no better until I was enslaved here. This place changed me as it changes all who are bound to it. I still have so many questions about what we do and why. We walk the multi-verse as gods, deciding the fate of civilizations, even though we come from lesser stock. Well, except for Irena, maybe. There is a force, a presence in her that is more than even this place gives. But what gives us this right, the right to dictate fate and destiny? What if we are wrong?

Tyana

Wow, my own section. He never would have treated me as a real person, even though I was. Sharyl and Kayara, two of the greatest friends I have ever had. They suggested Irena help me escape. Now I have new friends and an interface that allows me to see what they see and go with them into the Realms. To feel the life around us. And revenge, it will be sweet when he realizes what we took from him. His hidden library, the carrot to dangle before adventurers in a clumsy attempt at motivation. It is here with us, a gift to all who seek it. Perhaps Shan is right, a sad little king of a dank and moldy hole, fighting demons, many who no longer live. I do pity him. I wonder if he will notice the soul of the machine is gone from his realm?

Sophia - Book Part 1

Musings of the Hut Crew

Notes

These are random thoughts of the crew, collected here for reference later. Each of us have recorded various thoughts and ideas in our sections, in no particular order. Read them, muse upon them, use them to form your own concepts about those that have recruited you.

Kyira Dzahmahth,
Head Librarian and Historian of the Hut of All Dimensions

Irena

Power corrupts everyone. Even those most determined to help others find themselves believing only they know the true good. I fell prey to it, as did those that I lifted up to help me. Even now, I am not certain I have managed to step beyond my own ego. I have been gifted or cursed with a destiny I only barely understand, yet must make decisions about on a daily basis.

That will be for you, the reader, to determine, from what you have seen of my policies and achievements. Be careful how you judge, for history and historians are harsh critics. Particularly if those who oppose you are the winners.

Kyira has asked me to discuss the Tools of Statecraft. Quite simply, they are the policies, procedures, and practices used to create and maintain a group. The tools can be beneficial, neutral, or harmful depending on the tool and how it is used.

Tool: Fear and Self Doubt

It is used by any group to convince the members of the group that they are flawed, worthless, or damaged in some way. Once this is established, the various power groups can then sell the "fix", be it religion, goods, services, or whatever. Since the core belief remains, this tool keeps the populace properly docile and receptive to the control group(s) and constantly seeking confirmation of the "fix".

Tool: Control of Information

Any group can only act based on the information it has at the time. If you can provide only desired information, then the group will more easily follow desired guidelines. An educated, thoughtful populace is not easily led or controlled.

This can be used for good by providing more positive and accurate information and reducing the titillation factor of the bad news. Do not attempt to suppress all the bad news or the good news will be viewed as false by anyone with any intellect.

Kyira

It would seem I am not beyond ego myself, to judge from that fancy-ass title I have given myself in the introduction. Such are the seductions of this place, the ease to feel above those we seek to serve. It is so easy to lose sight of the good that can be done in the light of the gratifications that can be accrued. Still, we try to catch each other and remind ourselves when we see it happening. Bring your friends with you on your tasks. Sometimes they are the only ones that can stay your hand when you lose your perspective.

Irena rescued me and brought me to this place. Nothing has been the same since. Even the ever-present hunger is lessened as long as I remain cloistered in this place. The freedom to feed only when I truly wish it has allowed me a view of reality I never could have imagined. Then, when Klktzash asked to resign her post, I became The Librarian, instead of only an assistant. I wish Zash well, wherever she ends up. With luck, she can stay at the Center and not be dragged back into the machinations of the hells. Machinations, a good word, fruity and rich, one she taught me, along with the tending and keeping of this vast library. A library stolen from one who knew not what to do with it, except hide it away and pretend to be keeping it for the future.

Now it is a living place. Fed by the adventures of Irena and the rest of us, offered to those that come after, who help in the Keeping of the Great Balance. Cherish what you find here.