What Dreams May Come

[riversinger]

Dr. River Song is holed up in a corner of the bar, her notebook spread before her, and surrounded by a formidable stack of books.  Biology, genetics, advanced gene therapy, chaos theory in genetic mutation, and a myriad more.  There is one very lonely book sitting at the edge of her table, ostensibly being ignored.  Very pointedly ignored.  En

Comments

[ostro_goth]

"Greetings," Teja says, eyeing the title of that book. "Somebody tried for Latin, and missed?"

[riversinger]

"Church Latin," she explains, setting her pen down and resting her head in her hands. "Thaumaturgical nonsense. Bloody monks."

She looks up and gives Teja a tired smile. "My apologies. I don't believe we've met. I'm Dr. River Song."

[ostro_goth]

"Ahh, monks," Teja says, as if that explained everything. "Bloody monks indeed!"

Pause.

"Greetings, Dr. River Song! I am Teja, son of Tagila; I was the last king of the Ostrogoths in Italy and died in battle, on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius, in the year 552 of Christian reckoning."

Another pause.

"All that is truly needed; else, there will be wonderment later about my being dead, or having been a king, or suchlike."

[riversinger]

River blinks. Ah the social niceties of Milliways.

"K'plah, or something," she smirks. "A pleasure to meet you, Teja son of Tagila."

"I suppose if we're doing formal introductions, I am River Song, archaeologist, daughter of Alisande and Walter Song, in the 51st century of Earth reckoning. My physical form terminated in the Great Library, Outer Reaches, and my data ghost was uploaded to the Library's computer a hundred years before I discovered my door to Milliways. So I suppose, technically, I'm dead too!"

This commonality seems to cheer her up some.

[ostro_goth]

"K'plah?" Teja says. "The magic of this place did not translate that word."

Pause.

"Ghosts may live in a computer? That is a new use of those, which I didn't know of before."

[riversinger]

"It's means, 'Victory' in Klingon. Bit of a joke, really. Oh nevermind."

She waves a hand to dispel the silliness.

"Data ghost is more of an expression really. A person's thoughts and memories, their personality, can all be stored by recording their neural signature. It's an incredibly advanced piece of technology."

[ostro_goth]

"What is a cling-on?" Teja asks.

[riversinger]

"They're a proud race. Tall, brow ridges, imperialistic, prone to violence. Lovely people. I'm surprised you haven't met one in bar."

[ostro_goth]

"No," Teja says. "They sound interesting. K'plah!!!"

[riversinger]

River laughs. "Yes, exactly! You have the hang of it! I think you would get along famously with them."

[ostro_goth]

"So do I," Teja says, somewhat amused. "What weapons do they use?"

[riversinger]

"Space ships, usually. With rather advanced technology. Or their traditional hand to hand weapon, which is what you were really asking, is a two-handed, single-edged blade, an ugly curved piece of -- thing." She sketches a shape in the air. "They're really quite serious about it. I wouldn't suggest you ask to hold one. They don't take kindly to that at all."

She has the good graces to look sheepish at least. Again, being an academic is difficult sometimes.

[ostro_goth]

"Do you have a picture of their weapon?" Teja says. "Or do you know what it is called?"

[riversinger]

River closes her eyes for a moment. And then opens them.

"A Bat'leth, I believe. I'm sure Bar could show you one. They're very difficult to use, or so I've been told."

She has no martial training whatsoever passed basic brawling.

[ostro_goth]

"I would ask about that, then," Teja says.

[riversinger]

"Ask to see their poetry and their songs, as well. They tend towards these extravagant ballads about battles and their song cycles are just -- well they go on a bit, but lovely stuff."