❧ i n b o x

[abheirrant]

—pposed to know when to start speaking? That wasn't a very thorough explanation on what I'm to do this, now was it? Hello? Hello? Are you listening to me? Are you even still ther— [beep]

Comments

[superposition]

[ Qubit shrugs. ] Not necessarily. You do realize "technology" is just as broad a category as "magic"? As you said - it depends on your design and implementation. What you're trying to do, and how you're trying to do it.

Take... [ aha! There's a convenient example right in front of him. ] Take this kettle, for instance. It works by running electricity through a single piece of wire. That's it. It's about the simplest thing you can make electricity do.

[abheirrant]

[He eyes the kettle again.]

And electricity is an energy, so... the wire acts as the guide for it, much like the lines in a glyph?

[superposition]

Well, yes and no. It's... [ He pauses, debating how to explain this to someone who might just have a completely different (or nonexistent) understanding of high-school physics. ]

It's a form of energy, produced by the motion of charged particles. In this case they're electrons - negatively charged particles, too small to be seen, they're an elementary component of matter - which are moving within the wire - not all in the same direction, of course, the wire is just a medium - such that the net flow of charge is positive. [ beat ] Does that make sense?

[ Please let that make sense, he isn't sure how to simplify it any further without just assigning you Feynman's lectures. ]

[abheirrant]

[Carlisle tries to assign the positive and negative aspects of these electrons to magic, as the terms are the same, but the part about them moving in different directions in the wire doesn't work with the comparison. He rubs at the back of his neck.]

I... suppose it does. [Such confidence.] The important part is that the flow of these particles powers the kettle, correct?

[superposition]

Correct. Well - [ he's about to add a qualifier or two, but then decides against it and nods a few times instead. ] Yes, that's correct. But it's also what produces the heat.

[ He removes the lid and holds the kettle so Carlisle can see the heating element at the bottom. ]

See the heating element here? Inside it there's a thin wire made of nichrome - that's an alloy of nickel and chromium. But for the power cord - [ which he picks up briefly to be clear what he's indicating ] - the internal wire is made of copper. Now, why do you think that is?

[ This will be on the quiz! Also the quiz is right now I guess! ]

[abheirrant]

Copper is easier to procure than the nichrome? I am not a metallurgist.

[Setting the two mugs before him, he closes his hand into a fist and opens it again a second later, conjuring an orb of water. About the size of a grapefruit, it sits easily in his palm as though encased in a bubble, its contents yet to be freed. He offers it to Qubit to place in the kettle.]

[superposition]

No - well, yes, but that's not why. It's because of some key differences in their physical and electrical properties.

[ Qubit accepts the water ball with both hands, and examines it as he continues, handling it with care. ]

Copper is what we call an efficient conductor. Electricity can pass through it with little resistance, so it's well-suited for power transmission. Nichrome's resistivity is about sixty-six times greater, though, which causes most of the energy to be lost - [ his eyes dart back to Carlisle ] - in the form of heat.

[abheirrant]

[Despite no longer being in the hands of the man who conjured it, the orb of water remains intact as Qubit takes it, leaving behind only the barest amount of moisture on the fingertips of Carlisle's gloves -- fingertips that he wrings as he tries to piece together all this new knowledge that Qubit is offering him. Admittedly, technology is less intimidating when breaking it down into parts, even if he doesn't fully comprehend each of those parts and the various terms associated with them. Taking it piece by piece allows him to compare it to concepts he does recognize, and that familiarity keeps him steady.]

I see... I think. There are some elements that still seem a bit like magic to me, albeit utilized in a very different way. Are you certain you have no interest in magic?

[superposition]

[ Qubit's brow crinkles, perplexed. How, he wonders, does any of this sound like magic? Does that just mean he failed to explain it properly? Okay yeah he's definitely going to get Carlisle a copy of those lectures. ]

... It isn't fair to call it disinterest per se. It's more that it's an exercise in frustration for me. For instance - can you explain to me how this globule is staying together?

[abheirrant]

[His eyes trail to the orb in question. Saying "magic" isn't very helpful, but it has been some time since he had to consider the principles behind a spell he has used so often that he could do it in his sleep. Well, assuming he could sleep anymore.]

There is the barest of an abjuration ward around it, held in place by what is, at this point, instinctual concentration.

[superposition]

[ Naw, Carlisle, you can still sleep! You're just godawful at it. ]

All right. But what exactly constitutes a ward, generally speaking? And what's meant by "abjuration" here? This may be going out on a limb, but I doubt the water has anything much to recant.

[abheirrant]

[That gets a chuckle out of him. Religious water, really.]

No no, abjuration as in a protective shield -- or in this case, a barrier that keeps something inside rather than out. Abjuration magic can be used either way. The glyph on your door is an abjuration ward, though a very different one.

[superposition]

[ Qubit nods attentively, starting to draw parallels to things he's more familiar with. ]

So in effect, it's roughly analogous to a force field? Like this one?

[ He indicates the personal shield generator on his belt. Jury's still out on what precisely it does and doesn't do, but it almost definitely saved his bacon from Kabal a couple weeks back. ]

[abheirrant]

Yes, I would say so. Except that the one around the water is much easier to break. Less magic used to keep it together and whatnot.

[You know who is happy he gave that thing to Qubit? This guy right here. It's maybe the one thing he doesn't regret at this point in his (un)life.]

[superposition]

[ You know who else is happy he gave that thing to Qubit? Qubit! ]

Right, right, obviously. [ He'd have figured it was weaker than that in any case, but the fact that it's leaving his hands damp is also pretty firm evidence. ] So you're maintaining the field through continuous application of eksth'alva. It's an expenditure of energy, in other words. But where does that energy come from?

[abheirrant]

[Carlisle gives Qubit a studying look.]

Do you want the long answer, or the short one?

[superposition]

Yes. Not necessarily in that order.

[abheirrant]

Short answer first, then.

[He pulls out bags of what is likely tea, as well as a small jar of sap.]

The energy comes from within us. Some say it is our very souls that we tap into as magical energy, while others insist it must be a divine connection, though I put little stock in the latter myself, given there are plenty of mages with no religious devotion to speak of.

[superposition]

[ Qubit notes the little jar with mild interest. That stuff, huh? He's had it before, it's not half bad, he just wasn't expecting it. He nods, though. ]

And if memory serves, you were already doing magic before you joined the priesthood, right? [ He tips the waterball gently into the kettle, and wipes his hands dry on his shirt before plugging it in. ] It sounds more apt to Reynir's sort of magic, actually. Not that either option is provable one way or the other.

[ Obviously you can't prove or disprove the existence of God, but the other choice isn't that much easier. After all, how do you quantify the soul? How do you prove its existence, or even define it? When Kaidan calls forth her spirits, are they actually the people they were in life, or merely psychic echoes preserved in the collective unconscious? Is there even a difference?

(Let's just file that one under "questions to never, ever ask Kaidan.") ]

[abheirrant]

[The orb collapses once inside the kettle, the water thoroughly filling the space. Carlisle, meanwhile, busies himself by pouring a bit of the sap into one of the mugs, closing the jar, then fishing a piece of paper and his pen from his satchel. Time to write another glyph, one that has some similarity to the one on the door -- but only some, as a couple of the sigils are completely different.]

How is it your ability works, then? You called it psionics, but never did explain how they differ from magic, aside from that their manifestation varies from individual to individual.

[Qubit getting attacked by a zombie and simultaneously hit with some of Carlisle's aural influence kind of derailed that conversation.]

[superposition]

[ Qubit watches the glyphcrafting process, curious. He conjured up the water easily enough without a glyph, so what's he doing now that would require one?

Anyway, psionics. This is a topic of great interest to Qubit, obviously, but spoiler alert, there's gonna be more science. ]

Do you want the long or short version?

[abheirrant]

[Carlisle, unfortunately, suspects there is going to be more science.]

Let us start with the short version.

[superposition]

All right, let's see. [ He puts a hand to his chin for a moment, thinking over how to phrase this. There are some pretty advanced concepts involved, and even the simplest analogy that comes to mind is above Carlisle's current grasp of physics. So... perhaps a more philosophical approach? He'll try to keep it light on the math, anyway. ]

Short version: "Psionics," as a field of study, describes the ways in which conscious minds can directly interact with matter, energy, and force. It differs from magic in that it's both universally consistent and empirically verifiable.

[ And it differs from "The Secret" in that it's not just New Age bullshit. ]

[abheirrant]

[Carlisle's brow knits as he slides the page with the glyph under the mug with the sap.]

How is it consistent when the abilities vary between individuals? Or are there more technomancers in your world?

[superposition]

"Technokinetics," and no, not that I'm aware of. But - understand, that's like asking how chemistry can be consistent when acids and bases have different properties. Chemical phenomena are extremely diverse, but they're all explained by the same underlying forces. It's the same way with psionics.