002. Intimations

[electroniccrane]

[Audio // English]

In the Metamorphoses of Ovid, the Sibyl of Cumae is granted a wish by the god Apollo, in exchange for her virginity. She takes up a handful of sand and wishes to live for as many years as the grains of sand she holds. Later, she spurns the god's affections and he denies her eternal youth. The Sibyl wastes away over the years

Comments

[teethofneedles]

As long as I can keep attaching body parts, I'm essentially immortal already.

Ain't all it's cracked up to be.

[electroniccrane]

In that case, what did you trade for immortality?

[teethofneedles]

My life.

[electroniccrane]

Clarify?

[teethofneedles]

I lost whatever it is gives me true life. I'm a fuckin' zombie. I eat human flesh. Plus, you know, I lost my family, my friends, and my country.

[electroniccrane]

If you still have continuity of consciousness, how are you not "truly" alive?

And did you trade these things, or were they taken from you?

[teethofneedles]

Maybe. My "soul" is alive, I guess. But my body is dead.

And they were taken from me, so I guess it wasn't really a trade.

[electroniccrane]

Where I'm from, we call the thing that separates a person from a machine the "ghost." We don't know what it is, but we can tell when it's there.

[teethofneedles]

Guess so. Body is still dead, though, so that doesn't help me any.

[electroniccrane]

Indeed.

I wasn't expecting to get many answers from actual immortals, but I seem to be underestimating how strange this ship actually is.