003 (mar. 7) / video.

[dissenter]

[it's been over a month since qilby last showed his face in a personal post on the network, and since then the pile of books on his workspace have grown to obscene levels. either he's been spending all his food money on these things -- he certainly isn't looking any less gaunt than usual -- or someone's been seriously ignoring their due dates at the library…

due dates don't apply to kings, anyway. and that's the truth!

he smiles a tired smile.] Believe it or not, I think I'm beginning to exhaust Shibusen's library of its resources. A word to the wise -- the selection is smaller than it first appears, when the majority of books are restricted to the public.

[is that a subtle jab at the way things are run? probably not. he's still generally-cheery looking, after all.] I wonder what the policy on traveling outside the city is, when one's not accompanying their partner on a mission. It's dangerous out there, of course, but I'm curious about the rest of this world outside the city's walls. It's not every day that I-- [well, that'd be a lie] ... That most people get to see a new planet, and I'm sure I'm not the only un-partnered individual who's got an itch to explore. The libraries of the world await...

... Perhaps, when things calm down a bit. [you know, when you mighty warriors can afford to sit around and lounge by the pool all day.] In the meantime, does anyone have any suggestions as to other ways of acquiring study material? A man needs to keep himself occupied.

[you have no idea.]

Comments

[dissenter]

[qilby listened just as thoughtfully as he could only assume zeratul had been, chin resting in his hand. his first response was to frown, the lower half of his face obscured by his fingers, and murmur a quiet "she didn't mention that, now..."

his second was to add:] You're certain it was a plan, then-- what they had for you? If so, why abandon their children, all the effort they put into raising them?

[and how typical of a race so reliant on their spirituality to fall to pieces when faced with adversity their gods couldn't wave away and fix. he'd always tried to make sure his kind were never that weak.]

[adun_toridas]

[He made no comment to what Selendis had and hadn't said - she was, after all, more concerned about warfare, combat, and the future. He was a warrior only after a scholar, though the latter was rarely in demand anymore.]

I have spent the majority of my life following their footsteps across the galaxy, and while I have witnessed firsthand many wonders, I have yet to divine their true purpose. Whatever it was, we no longer fit the mold, and were thus left to see to ourselves for the first time since we could ever remember.

[And that's where he diverged from the Khalai, and their inability to lie adequately. Very, very few protoss had learned what the Xel'Naga had truly intended, and he wasn't about to share it with Qilby. No offense, but it wasn't something he really needed to know.]

In time, the mystic known as Khas returned my people to the peace we had once known, rekindling the psionic gestalt inherent in us all. So keenly tuned to one another's thoughts, feelings, and emotions, we could no longer hate one another as we once did, and began to rebuild what was lost. The tribal affiliations were all but dissolved, and our people were lead by a group of elders known as the Conclave. That, I suppose, is ancient history. Recent history... [He allowed himself a small laugh.] Well, I cannot say it is much quieter.