A pirate's tactic

[freearcadia]

This is more directed to those, who like me have been dragged to this world, though I won't fault a native for listening in.

I am curious as to what we might have in common: world names, languages, culture, technology - and what is different.

This isn't just idle curiosity or a means of trying to find some comfort of familiarity in such a strange land, but I suspect if there is enough of a commonality in one area or another, we could in someway use it to our advantage against the Empire.

Comments

[freearcadia]

[He listens attentively, noting how Rezo seem to be hesitant at first, unused to speaking his native tongue? The pirate wondered, as he tries to dissect what linguistic root it might have. Then he quietly sighed, shaking his head]

I'm afraid not, it doesn't sound familiar either.

[redprayer]

That doesn't surprise me. None of the other Outlanders I've spoken to so far have understood my language either.

[Though he didn't have much opportunity to actually speak properly with other Outlanders before joining the Corsairs.]

Still, there may be points of commonality between our worlds... What gods do they worship in yours? Do you have a church like the Church of the Divine?

[freearcadia]

[Now that's a question, the pirate gave a thoughtful hum before speaking]

There's several religions, many do have churches and organized... [He pauses] leadership, others are more personal. It'd take quite a while to list even the most common ones, and I myself am not particularly religious.

[redprayer]

[Since Rezo's experience with religious diversity is very limited, Harlock's description surprises him.]

That sounds considerably more varied than the faiths of Esthere or of my own world. In my world, most people worship the gods, who are led by {Flare Dragon Cepheid.} I don't think Cepheid's name can be translated, but His title means something akin to... Burn Lizard Monster. [Rezo says this tentatively because wow he has a feeling this sounds considerably less sophisticated in Imperial.] I don't know if this world has {dragons,} but he is said to take the form of one.

At any rate, besides the gods there are also people who worship the spirits of nature or the spirits of their ancestors. And many revere a mixture of all of them. And there are a few cults that worship {mazoku.}

[freearcadia]

A... Ryu or Drachen?

[He ventured, guessing what he is saying from context. So, guess dragons are real in other places - he should be more surprised by this, but it's a strange universe, or perhaps multiverse.]

It's almost as common not to believe in a higher power as is believing where I am from. But what is a... "Mazoku"?

[redprayer]

[It sounds like Rezo's awkwardly translated title rang a bell for Harlock, so Rezo elaborates on what a dragon is in his world.]

A {dragon} is a large, magical beast with wings and four legs, that resembles a reptile. Their intelligence varies, but the strongest and most intelligent {dragons} serve the gods. Although, some mazoku also take on {dragon} forms.

[And that's a good segue into explaining mazoku, although mazoku are very hard to explain even in Rezo's own language.]

As for the mazoku, their nature is... difficult. They are beings that belong to a- a different space, and they do not have living bodies. They live off of painful feelings and seek the destruction of the world, making them the enemy of the gods. Do you have either {dragons} or mazoku in your world?

[freearcadia]

Stories, legends - some creatures that a drunken sailor might mistake for things like that, but they're not real, least not on Earth.

[The description makes him think of demons, so there's worlds that seem to be right out of a manga that someone on his crew tend to leave around]

[redprayer]

The fact that you have stories about them might be worth considering in its own right.

[Maybe they were real in Harlock's world at one point, but died out- although it's very hard to kill a dragon. Or a mazoku.]

What kind of magic does your world have? My own and the magic of Esthere already play by different rules.

[freearcadia]

Magic...?

[Oh right, he has to remind himself it is real]

No. It does not exist where I am from. There are things science can't fully explain, but not magic.

[redprayer]

Is that so? That doesn't sound very convenient, but I suppose if your world is used to it you must have developed your own ways of dealing with things.

[Gunpowder instead of fireballs is the first example that comes to Rezo's mind, but naturally his thoughts soon segue to his primary interest.]

What's the medicine in your world like?

[freearcadia]

Well I never noticed an absence. For medicine... it's very advanced, most illnesses and injuries can be treated quite easily.

[Harlock pauses, sorting out thoughts, mapping concepts to Imperial words he knows]

Missing limbs can be replaced with mechanical versions that response and move exactly like the original, or better. Diseases can be... examined and treated quickly. Though more complicated procedures are terribly expensive.

[The man pauses, he hardly considers most uses of it medically necessary, but he recognizes the edge cases and Rezo did seem interested in the subject - he presses on]

That... includes replacing your entire body with a mechanical one.

[redprayer]

So you have soul transferal- [Rezo hesitates. Harlock had insisted his world was magicless.] -methods? Such things are possible in my own world, although very, very difficult. There are few sorcerers capable of such magic. How common is the procedure in your world?

[freearcadia]

[He catches the self-correction, he didn't believe in souls - he knows they exist, the Arcadia is proof enough of that, but Harlock kept tight-lipped on that]

It's... depends on how thorough one wants to be, but generally only the extremely wealthy or those willing to put themselves into heavy debt will go through the process, though not everyone who receive it was willing.

[redprayer]

I see. That is often the way of things with drastic procedures, particularly if they're not well-established. [Dryly:] And evidently social inequality is another common point.

[freearcadia]

That seems to go without saying, I think.