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Finally getting to this:
Through The Eyes of Infinity
A Record of the Lodoss War Shortfic
The skies were a perfect azure, as they always were.
Pirotessa hated perfect skies.
Interesting opening.
Thanks. Been trying to work on my openings in order to 'catch' reader's
interest. It's a lot easier when it involves shorter fics.
She could remember a time when clouds would randomly hang in the air.
Some
large, some small. Some fat, some thin. Some one huge mass, some strung
out
so far they barely connected with one another. And if she used her
imagination, she could sometimes picture the clouds taking on shapes:
People. Animals. Objects. Anything. Everything.
Thats what happens when you take too much acid.
Or just have an overactive imagination.
Very considerate, really.
Pirotessa wished people would be less considerate.
Looks like someone needs a bit of change.
Yep.
It felt like forever that Pirotessa had been smothered in 'love'.
Thats the effect of atwo hundred and forty three year incestuous orgy.
Kinda nasty when you thought about it.
Which is why I don't >_<
Her last true friend.
Her vibrator had broken in the forties and rosy palm just didn't do it.
I ever tell you you're evil?
complained how others were like that. Pirotessa thought it an unusually
accurate assessment for a race that seemed so inherently stupid most of
the
time. Centuries of observations had never made her waver in that
particular
conclusion about the human race; it only served to reinforce it.
Sadly, after my much reduced time giving examination of the species, I
must agree.
But since you're one of them, what do you really know? :)
She wondered if her friend thought the same way. She would have to ask
her
at this decade's meeting.
I think you refer to it as "this decade's meeting" every time. May want to
change that around a few times.
Hmm. Okay.
high. At least a dozen other equally large skyislands were in view from
the
border at the edge of the floating landmass she currently stood on, but
this
was the one she wanted.
I get the impression that every thing is far too organized to have such
problems as thin air or jet streams bothering people.
At this point in history, yep.
"I was wondering when you'd get here," Deedlit chided once Pirotessa got
to
the table, though the effect was lost since she was smiling happily the
entire time.
Well, four thousand years can change a person. Can't really fault you.
I should think so.
Deedlit seemed unmoved by the declaration. "I'm always early for these
little get-togethers. They do only come along once in a decade. Now sit
down." She made a gesture to the open chair opposite her.
If everything's as calm and placid as it appears to be, I bet that
eagerness is quite unusual.
Nah. People still get eager about things, though everything is a lot m ore
calm and peaceful than in the past.
wouldn't openly admit to it. Though perhaps it was time for a change.
Maybe
next time she would surprise Deedlit by arriving at their rendezvous
first.
A little change rarely hurt things.
And that last bit made me realize just how subdued these people are. They
need a good war to liven them up.
Heh.
A young man still in his early teens, obviously a cook from the style of
his
uniform, approached the table. He bowed deeply before the duo. "It's an
honor to meet you, Eternal Ones."
He continued gushing. "I've never met one of your kind before, let alone
two."
So elves are that rare. We'll get back to this.
As compared to humans? Yes.
"I've been thinking about the past lately."
Deedlit jerked. The next line was supposed to go: "Not much, and
yourself?"
She cast a warded glance in Pirotessa's direction "Have you now?"
Yep, more proof to just how placid these guys are. Good job.
Thanks.
Pirotessa shrugged, a helpless little gesture, especially coming from
her.
"I don't know. I just have. And I mean the far off past, not recent
events."
"S'a waste of time," Deedlit shrugged non-committedly as her companion's
drink finally arrived. "Worry about what's ahead, not behind."
Eh, I'm somewhat surprised by this. Given how everything seems to be
controlled for perfection I think you succeeded if you were trying to
make me think this is a 'perfect world,'
No, no, not that. Just that everything is much more quiet and boring than in
the past. It's not meant to be 'perfect' by any stretch of the imagination.
Just much more slow and itemized, for lack of a better term.
this line doesn't really sit that
well with me. I certainly received the impression that theirs nothing
cataclysmic in the future to worry about.
Nah. Just nothing happening in the last couple hundred years or so.
Of course, your characters could
be brought down to such a level that a minor upset in business could be
considered apocalyptic but still.
To a degree. They aren't completely jaded about it, but neither are the
expereinces in action completely new.
"Sounds like you need laid," Deedlit said as she finished her glass and
ordered another.
Even sex would get boring after four millenia.
Luckily they only remember about two of it. :)
heard. Her words were more breathed than spoken. "Remember, you asked
for
this, so now you're going to get it. The answer is:
"There is no point to life.
"Never was.
"Never will be."
Thank you Soren Kriekergard <sp>
Don't remember my philosphers very well. Had the two classes I took in it
way too long ago, though I got easy 'A's in both.
This is when the very existentialist theme of this comes to full light and
I'll take a moment to comment on it. I can't see this happening. A race
thats effectively immortal, barring accidents, I see as adoptng this
philosphy, flirting with it on and off throughout the years. The problem
with this level of nihilism though is if you follow it to its natural
conlusion, past 'there is no point to life' there's no purpose to strive
Unless they find themselves enjoying it.
and they'd all just kill themselves.
But that would be assuming there's a point to killing themselves as well. :)
Up until now, I was assuming that
they had goals to life, just off camera as it were. Given thousands of
years to brood about life and brood about the realization that there is
no point to it, I think the entire race's eventual suicide is far more
certain than the "love drifts to nought" bit.
They aren't quite that bad and here's why. (Yes, I did take
this into consideration, though whether you accept the explanation is up to
you)
The memory loss is a natural coping mechanism for the elves. 2000 years is
roughly the amount of
time they remember well before they start forgetting things, however they
don't 'feel' the passage of time the same way humans do. It goes much more
quickly to their perception.I tried to show that through some of Pirotessa
musing about
how quickly humans die (a seeming eyeblink) and that she treats these
'decade visits' with Deedlit as a common occurence. I approximateed that as
about 10 'human years' = '1 elven year' if you will. Approximate their
feeling for the passage of time as roughly 200 to you and me. Personally I
think I
could keep myself entertained and interested in things for that amount of
time, though there would no doubt be a great many experiences that would be
terribly boring to me. For them, they might have done engaged in a behavior
2900 years
in the past, but it would feel 'new' to them since they haven't the faintest
idea they did it before.
The words just seemed so... true, once they were spoken aloud. It made
terrible, terrible sense. In a way, it explained everything that
Pirotessa
had questioned over the last several hundred years. She did not want to
believe them with all of her heart, but that wouldn't change anything if
Deedlit was correct.
I take it from this that Pirotessa has subconsciously believed this for
years and just hasn't been brave enough to admit it.
Suspected it, at least.
Deedlit returned to her seat across from her friend. "Hard to accept at
first, I know. I was the same way." At least she thought she had been.
That
particular lesson of life had stuck with her for sometime now, perhaps
two
thousand years.
Damn nigh everything in Deedlits life happened two thousand years ago it
seems. Wonder how long before she forgets the "meaning" of life.
Heh. She doesn't actually remember figuring it out, she just remembers the
result. :)
more lovers than I can possibly remember too. Some I used for sex,
others I
thought I loved, and some I truly did. That sort of bonding helps a lot
too,
even when you know they're going to die. Basically, what I'm trying to
say
is just because there is no overall point to life, doesn't mean you
should
stop living it."
Nihilism taken to a different end? Eh, anythings possible, I guess.
Sure. People can use more than one philosphical bent to life. A lot of them
depend on mood and situation.
Deedlit continued grinning. "Not much. Just going to some bar where
we'll
dance a lot, get really drunk, and pick up a couple of guys and get
laid."
This is, sadly, the part I really can not believe. Given she's given up on
any point in ANYTHING, effectively, and she's been banging around for
4,000 years,
Only remembers 2000 of them, though.
I can't picture her as being excited abut yet more sex. I
know people who've been having it for less than two decades and most agree
it looses its flare much quicker than you would think.
Take into consideration they get older too. Even I know I have less energy
and enthuseasm now as when I was yong. People change, but the Elves don't.
Deedlit and Pirotessa still have as much energy and youth as they did on
Lodoss. The only thing they are a bit jaded about is having experienced as
much as they have, but physically they are still in the 'prime' of their
lives.
Hmm. Haven't done a 'mere' character piece in a while. Pretty sure the
whole
concept of dealing with 'eternal love' for immortals such as the elves
set
in Record of the Lodoss War has been done before, just not by me. ^_^
Was
sort of hoping the more 'modernesque' setting in the opening would help
to
grab attention, even if the entire concept has been written many times
before in many different ways by those better than I.
Given you've totally changed every bit of the characters,
True. Should have labelled it more of a 'concept piece' I suppose. Since the
character have gone through so many changes, for obvious reasons.
As much as I tend to be the closet romantic, I also swing towards less
idealistic versions of love as well, this being a perfect example.
Employing
the age old adage of ' eternal love' and some of the difficulties (or in
this case, impossiblity of it) for individuals that might actually have
the
ability to live forever certainly applied to that line of thinking. I
thought the idea of Deedlit being the one to completely forget about
things
first and being so nonchalant about it would be a bit of a twist. After
all,
her and Parn's relationship was the center of RotLW and was pretty much
the
classic sword and sorcery, knight and maiden tale, and would be the more
likely part to be remembered rather than Pirotessa's own subplot with
Ashram.
Well the absolute improbability of someone surviving that long, even
accepting this lack of aging, is so staggering and thats glossed over, I
fail to see the problem in eternal love. Actually, I find their continued
existance with what would seemt o be an utterly bleak life harder to wrap
my mind around/
Hmm. Well, I can accept that as a reaction. I figured there would be various
ideas, some of which disagree, with that happened in the fic.
Well, enough ranting. And whether you agree or disagree with the ideas
presented, hope you enjoyed.
Well, I did enjoy the prose, the main reason I find myself reading you so
much. Can't say I think you took the premise to the correct conclusion,
but you did a good job of leading it to yours.
Thanks. This wasn't meant to be some deep meaning piece. Just an idea I came
up with, thought about, then felt like writing up.
D.B. Sommer
Man, I seem to be sending you more and more negative replies.
Not really. Comments on 'Should Old Acquaitance' were very positive. You
didn't like the short OMG! piece I did a while back, but that was the only
one that sticks in my mind.
I wonder if
thats anything to do with I find your writing more and more entertaining
in some weird way. /me shrugs.
Heh. Could be
As always, thanks for the comments.
D.B. Sommer
Miashara