From e63e49803ede5f93a9b8eaa64180fc72634bd3c3 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Deepak Mallubhotla Date: Fri, 22 Jul 2022 20:29:20 -0500 Subject: [PATCH] feat: adds marina describing farcalling theory with puns --- sarlastory/marina-describes-farcalling.txt | 121 +++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 121 insertions(+) create mode 100644 sarlastory/marina-describes-farcalling.txt diff --git a/sarlastory/marina-describes-farcalling.txt b/sarlastory/marina-describes-farcalling.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..1ba8922 --- /dev/null +++ b/sarlastory/marina-describes-farcalling.txt @@ -0,0 +1,121 @@ +―So, like what? + You want a full lecture? + +Sarla looked over her beer at Marina. +Cyril looked exasperated. + +―C'mon Sarla, I don't want to think about fucking Meadowlark theory, he said. + +Sarla looked down, a bit stung. +It was a good point. +The smuggled beers were expensive, and the storage room in the Hall of Roots they had hid themselves in was, though rarely-used, hardly a picture of perfect privacy. +The others probably didn't want to take those risks just to think more about their work. + +―No dude, it's fine, Marina said. + You know Sarla loves that shit. + +Marina gave Sarla a wide smile. +Sarla felt her face flush, likely because of the beer. + +―So, the Meadowlark isn't like, a telephone or anything. + Obviously. + Like, what do you hear when you connect to it? + +―With a normal connection, it sounds like a faint rustling. + Like soft wind over the grass. + +Cyril rolled his eyes. +Marina quickly scolded him. + +―Don't disrespect the Meadowlark, Cyril. + You swore oaths. + Even if Sarla writes poetry about it. + +Cyril barked a conciliatory half-apology. + +―Anyway, so yeah, you'll hear the actual sound because Voice is power and all that, you know. + But that's not like, communication, right? + Like the Voice isn't anyone's voice that can talk to you. + +Sarla nodded. +This was basic Meadowlark theory. +But there was a disconnect between that and what Sarla knew about Farcalling, and Sarla's face scrunched in thought. + +―So you probably are thinking of the right question: + Where does information come out of the connection? + +From Marina's tone she guessed this was a regurgitation of a lesson from one of her teachers. +When you connected to the Meadowlark, the physical sound only reflected your own mental state, and nothing else. +And using the Meadowlark meant pushing back against it, but that also didn't affect others. +She'd been near people using the Meadowlark in demonstrations, and hadn't felt anything, whether she was connected or not. + +―So what's the trick? Sarla asked. + +Marina chugged the rest of her beer, and opened another can. + +―Yeah, so, it's hard to explain. + I'm not like, a teacher, she said chuckling. + Uhh, so what we've learned so far is like. + So, imagine you're standing at the edge of a lake. + Someone in a boat can push water at you and you'll feel it. + Or like, um... + +She trailed off in thought a moment, and Sarla finished her beer. +Cyril handed her another one. + +―Okay, so. + When you're too far in the water, you're constantly pushing and pulling on it. + Like, you're swimming and trying to stay afloat, you know? + So you can't tell if someone is pushing water at you from a boat. + But if you stand on the shore, you can feel the water moving. + And you can push back on the water. + +―You're saying, you connect only partially to the Meadowlark. + That way you can feel other people's connection and disconnection? + +That made sense, the moment of connection could theoretically be sensed. +Or at least Sarla didn't immediately see why it couldn't. + +―Oh, yeah. + And like, there aren't boats in the Meadowlark so the other person is also standing on another part of the shore. + +Cyril groaned. + +―Marina, seriously? + +―What, Cyril? Marina said, glaring daggers at him. + +―Just like, Sarla gets it, okay? + Obviously, no offense Sar, but you understand stuff super easily anyway. + No more stupid metaphors. + +Sarla wasn't sure how that could have been offensive. + +―How does distance come into it?, she asked. + Even if you can feel the connection, shouldn't it be very slight unless you're super close? + And even if you're close, it must be ridiculously faint. + +Marina nodded. +―Well that's the trick. + You have to be very sensitive, and it's all about connecting to the Meadowlark as little as possible. + Like, in order to not swamp out anything else you have to basically dip like, the very tip of your tongue in the water. + +Cyril didn't even bother to object to that. + +―And as for distance, the Meadowlark is related to like green stuff. + Fields, I mean. + Our ancestors would form great herds, all like, majestic, you know? + So the Meadowlark likes to clump up near fields. + And so like, you take a field and you cut out a section of grass, including the dirt and roots, and carry that away. + That's basically all the big boxes that get used for Communications are. + When you sit next to it and connect and disconnect back and forth, you can feel it even by the original field. + There are some tricks to enhance it more, but basically being on the same field, even if it's a square cut from the same field, lets it work. + +Sarla nodded. + +―Gotcha, that makes sense. + So it ends up being a grassroots communication system. + +―Exactly! + There were some other attempts with like growing long plants on trellises like wires, but they were always too unreliable. + It was too hard to properly hear things over the grapevine.