Hubris from Revelation: the Social Engineering of Ultimate Truths [Monday, Period 3]

[atreideslioness]

Ghanima was completely unaffected by whatever was going around this week, apparently, as she sat serenely in front of the class.

Sometimes, being able to control yourself on the cellular level to, say, render a certain pollen inert was fantastic.

"Some of you are most likely having concentration issues today, so we'll keep this simple," she said, trying to keep a neutral face (though some essence of a smile was probably peeking through).

"Earlier in the semester we talked about prophets and oracles, and you had the chance to read your fortunes i if you liked. Now, since we're closer to the end of the semester, you have another chance to read your fate, or the fates of your classmates."

She gestured around the room, at the tarot cards, bones, oracle cards, kau chim, polished crystals, and various other moddable devices. "There's many different ways to see the future. Just no necromancy in class, please."

Who knows? Perhaps visions of tiny visitors would dance in their heads!

Comments

Re: Talk to Ghanima

[atreideslioness]

"You'd be quite good at simulflow, actually, with training," Ghanima replied thoughtfully. "It is literally the simultaneous flow of several threads of consciousness at any given time; mental multitasking, as it were. I can consult my genetic memory, my own memory, and process all sensory and extra-sensory input at the same time to arrive at a conclusion that seems almost instantaneous to most people."

"The Spice is... life," she continued, gesturing to her eyes. "Long life and health, for almost everyone. Death, should you stop taking it. The cornerstone of interstellar travel. My mother's people use it to create almost everything; paper, plastics, explosives, cloth... it a naturally produced awareness spectrum narcotic that forms a fundamental block of commerce and technological development for the entire Imperium, and influenced much of the culture of my home planet, as we are the only source of the drug."

"And, for some of us who have been bred for it, it can awaken the ability to see the paths of the future with a clarity that others can never possess. It is possible to purposely overdose on the drug, and enter a trance that allows you to look forward and backwards through time."

Re: Talk to Ghanima

[unusual_sith]

"It sounds like an amazing substance," Lana said. "Very different from the drug my galaxy calls 'spice'."

She eyed the cards and Lady Ghanima. "I don't know which to ask first - which paths of the future you see, or if you can teach me simulflow. Maybe the latter? Enhancing the present sounds better to me than knowing potential futures."

Re: Talk to Ghanima

[atreideslioness]

"To know the future is to be trapped by it. Ironically enough, it is my goal to make these--" Ghanima tapped the cards, "--worthless. Artistic relics, perhaps, or a game, but fundamentally unusable. A universe of infinite surprises, that is what I crave. For the most part, I use these for amusement. I've only really attempted to see the future once, and only because I saw no other way out of the situation. I'd rather never do it again."

"But the simulflow...it requires both mental and physical training, to be able to handle simultaneous input and to sharpen the senses you already have. It's a substantial time investment. Are you sure you're willing to undertake it?"

Re: Talk to Ghanima

[unusual_sith]

"Are the results worth it?" Lana asked.

Re: Talk to Ghanima

[atreideslioness]

"You're a little old to start the training," Ghanima said bluntly. "Which will make it more difficult. Usually, the Sisterhood starts girls the moment they can sit-up as babies."

"That being said--" There was a blurring of air, and Ghanima was on the other side of Lana. "The results have multiple applications, if you can achieve them. And I have never let what the Sisterhood thought was proper dictate a single thing I've done, and I've had remarkable success with non-traditional students previously."

Re: Talk to Ghanima

[unusual_sith]

Lana grinned. She could just feel how she had moved in the Force, but not how it had happened; that could definitely be worth it. And the faster thinking even more so.

"Fortunately, I love to learn." She bowed. "I would be grateful for your teaching, Lady Ghanima."