for all the world's a stage - LIBRARY LOG

[libraryassistants]

Who: The Editors
What: The Library changes once again...
When: January 9- January 22
Where: The Library
Content warnings: Please put them in the comment headers!

The Assistants have vanished into their backroom once again, leaving only the increasingly unbelievable “Back In 5” sign on the Help Desk, but at least they have attempted to impart some knowledge on the Editors before departing (or… attempted to do anything but, depending who you ask). The customary tea cart with drinks and increasingly stale biscuits is parked in its usual spot, though it seems that the quality of the tea at least has improved some. (Still waiting on coffee improvement.)

There’s a new crafting setup in the Maker Space, a table with an iron and machine for making vinyl designs, along with the instructions on how to use it, and a stack of t-shirts in various sizes. Usually there’s something in the correct size, but, well, mistakes happen. While this addition to clothing is a boon, there is the problem that the t-shirts can’t be taken out of the room until some sort of design is put on them. Get creative! Show off your style! Or maybe just steal one of the shirts that are there for display purposes. It’s fine, the Library can make more.

In the second week as the Library begins to change once more, the Lobby’s wooden floor shines with extra polish. The walls make an odd creaking sound as they shift, warping into brick covered with velvet drapings in a rich, dark red. Gold thread twinkles in the stitches, a sense of opulence woven through. The sound of ballroom music drifts by and, while in the Lobby, characters will be taken by the unusual impulse to dance.

Outside, in the Garden, the day/night cycle has paused firmly on a cloudless night. A full moon hangs in the air - literally. About the size of a basketball, it follows the first person who enters the Garden; hovering a couple of meters above their head. A white aura spreads from them, powered by the moon, and those who are caught in its light will find themselves unable to speak anything but the truth.

When the person to whom the moon is attached leaves the garden, the moon and its aura will leave them; and the moon will attach to the next person to enter instead.

On the circulation desk, there is a sign: “This Week’s Recommended Reading: Twilight!” The accompanying sign up sheet waits next to it for those wishing to check it out- though some will receive the movie instead of the book, with no particular rhyme or reason to it. Periodically someone might also receive something else entirely. Whoops? The Assistants at least will fix that quickly. Richard will be embarrassed, while Phillip will be trying not to cackle.

While not advertised, various iterations of different stories will be available throughout the Library. In particular, someone seems to have left the projector in one of the meeting rooms running, with a variety of different recorded plays. These range from professional productions, to parodies, to what appear to be high schoolers (of which one production features a sixteen year old version of Phillip running around being an absolutely nuisance.

Comments

[bashasasdemon]

For fucks sake Sanguinius. "Yeah, generally if your options are 'submit or die,' that is not a good arrangement." He can't believe he has to explain this.

"I understand. But I'm not going to make unattainable promises; that doesn't help anyone." Kai is pretty firm on that. "I can't promise you that that won't happen. But we can do what we can to get ahead of it and make sure it doesn't." And he will promise himself that he won't let the man hurt anyone else.

[angel_of_baal]

"Is there a better one? Without the armed might of the Imperium, there would simply be 'or die'." Well, the colonists attacked by the Nephilim had a third option, which was to be enslaved brainmeat puppets to the alien invaders, but, well, he wasn't going to count that because ew.

"Humanity continues only under the auspices of the Imperium. We want to bring science and reason and prosperity to all." Which is pretty hard if, see above, brainmeat puppets.

"This is how I know you have honor, Kaiisteron," And why he feels even semi comfortable confiding these things. Not making promises one cannot be sure of keeping was honorable and good. "I would not want to be a repeat of my brother." Sorry, Curze. He loves you and all, but you're...uh. Not a role model.

[bashasasdemon]

"Your people didn't make the choice to join the Imperium. They made the choice to live. Which isn't really much of a choice, is it?" Please, at least, follow that logic. He shakes his head. "They could have made offers that didn't involved violent death to everyone involved on refusal. But they didn't."

But that point will probably be as far as he'll press for now. There are many, many failings of any Empire- but this, perhaps, is the key starting one. At least for him.

That comment clearly surprises Kai a little, looking up from his thinking. He's... not sure he agrees. But then again Kai doesn't agree with most nice things people say about him. "No, I don't think anyone does." Not even Curze from the sound of it. ...At least when it came to accidental maiming, anyway.

[angel_of_baal]

"Life is about choices, and often the things we have to choose between are not of our own making, and almost never ideal." He might be as idealistic as it is possible to be in his world, but he's still a product of his world. He understands reality.

"I did not leave my people for the glory of war or the promise of conflict, but because they were safer, better, that way." It had been hard to leave the only people he had known, though he had no one claiming the title of mother or father, no siblings.

Sanguinius trusts where he trusts and others are free to disagree, but he does not dissemble. Kaiisteron might not claim the title of honorable, but he has it anyway.

"He does not, though he has accepted its need. At least here in the Library." In Woodhurst, it had been a, well, different story. "I worry that he might hunger for it, though."

[bashasasdemon]

"No, but that doesn't make it right." Kai is... more of an idealistic than he'd like to admit. Probably Bashasa having rubbed off of on him. But he does understand what was realistic, that Sanguinius may well have had to convince himself that everything was alright to survive. He understands that. People will do a lot of things to survive.

Oh boy. That's a whole other problem that Kai is very much not prepared to deal with right now. "I don't suppose there's some sort of peaceful outlet we could direct him towards?" he asks dryly. Has Curze considered taking up knitting?

[angel_of_baal]

"Perhaps there are some niceties that can happen after survival is secured." He doesn't know, they're trying to fight a crusade, here. "I know that I would die for my principles, but I have no right to ask my people to die for them." Surely Kai can see that issue clearly enough?

"I push my sons towards the arts, but I do not see that helping the Night Haunter." Give him a night to haunt? A safe little bat habitat? Wait, that was almost an idea. "He could use a dark place to rest."

[bashasasdemon]

Kai sighs. Of course he sees the issue. It's just he's not sure that Sanguinius understands that he shouldn't have been put there in the first place. "I know. I'm not saying you did the wrong thing; in your position, many people would have done the same." He's... not sure if he's one of them. He probably isn't anymore, at least. He would rather die- or in his case, become an unbodied consciousness drifting through the world- than be used like that. Like he saw his kin be.

He's not going to think about them right now.

A dark place to rest? "That's probably doable," he says slowly, "The problem is getting anything to stay put. Can he find the rooms? There are some that might work with some minor changes."

[angel_of_baal]

Should or should not, Sanguinius tried to be practical. Fighting reality was a war one would always lose. And reality had presented him with that choice. And he would make the same choice again. His people were savage and rough, but he loved them, and he loved his Legion more than his own life.

"It was the best thing. For them, and for me. I have seen...so many things. Wonders, I could not imagine. I have met brothers, those who did not hold themselves beneath me."

"I believe he can find rooms. I was thinking a section of the sleeping quarters could be sectioned off?" Much lower tech, much lower effort.

[bashasasdemon]

Unfortunately, he does have Kai there. "I... understand that." He's wondered himself, which path he would have preferred. If the Hierarchs had never come- well, surely that would have been better. So many people would still be alive. He would have lived with the Saredi for at least a mortal lifetime, had children, traveled the plains with them. They would have stayed his family. But if that had happened, then he never would have met Ziede. Or Tahren. Or Dahin.

He would never have met Bashasa.

"Maybe. The assistants gave someone curtains, to section their space off. I assumed he would want something more... private than that." It's already reasonably dark in the dorms, most of the time.