update from sparkleup

writing/post-self/neviim/ioan/005.md

@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ Eir frown deepened.
 
 "Fucking foxes, I swear to God," May said, laughing. "Now, I am assuming that those rules apply to you, too. Remember that I love you and that you love me. Remember who you were, who you are, and imagine what you can be. Let go, have fun, and tell me what the fuck your letter says already."
 
-Ey did eir best to square Dear's 'game' with the text of the letter ey'd received. There were so many ways this could go sideways. *Let go, hmm?* ey thought. *I guess there's nothing for it. Let go and have fun is about all that one can do in this situation.*
+Ey did eir best to square Dear's 'game' with the text of the letter ey'd received. There were so many ways this could go sideways. *Let go, hmm?* ey thought. *I guess there's nothing for it. Let go and try to have fun is about all that one can do in this situation.*
 
 "Alright," ey said, holding up the letter to read aloud. "Ioan, I hope you are well. We have finished our talks with the Artemisians in grand fashion. They have invited us to become their 'fifthrace', meaning that as many of us as would like are able to join them on Artemis, and the DMZ will be expanded to allow a portion of them to join us. There is so much more that I can say here, and will say in future letters, but this one comes with a specific purpose."
 
@@ -73,7 +73,11 @@ The skunk smiled, lifted eir hand, and licked the back of it affectionately. "Yo
 
 "Wait, what? Really?"
 
-"Yes, really. Obviously, I do not want to share it. Dear does not want to share it. We are still serious about not wanting to share it. Serious enough for one of the conservatives to assassinate one of our own, even. This is a dynamic that has arisen over time, though. The Name itself does not matter anymore. The bearer of it has been lost to time, and any reason to keep it confidential is lost along with them, but it became a hook, and then it became an identity."
+"Yes, really. Obviously, I do not want to share it. Dear does not want to share it. We are still serious about not wanting to share it. Serious enough for one of the conservatives to assassinate one of our own, even. This is a dynamic that has arisen over time, though. The Name itself does not matter anymore. The bearer of it has been lost to time, and any reason to keep it confidential is lost along with em, but it became a hook, and then it became an identity."
+
+"'Em'?"
+
+She winked.
 
 Ey shook eir head numbly. "You're all completely nuts."
 

writing/post-self/neviim/local/tycho/015.md

@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ And there, right in the middle of the clearing, sitting flush against the wall o
 
 The whole affair was dusty and tired, as though it had weathered a hundred sandstorms and would doubtless weather a hundred more, though it would never be truly clean again.
 
-To the side of the tollbooth, straddling the border, a squat, flat building sat, fronted by a sign declaring it to be 'Customs'. From the roof, an aged radio tower reached toward the sky: a narrow pyramid of angle-iron painted in that same red and white. A light flashed sleepily at the top.
+To the side of the tollbooth, straddling the border, a squat, flat building sat, fronted by a sign declaring it to be 'Customs --- Please Use Other Door'. From the roof, an aged radio tower reached toward the sky: a narrow pyramid of angle-iron painted in that same red and white. A light flashed sleepily at the top.
 
 "You guys are really weird, you know that, right?"
 
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ The skunk led him up to the gate beside the tollbooth --- a peek inside showed t
 
 The space had been subtly re-structured, repurposed from a conference space to a small, comfortable plaza. The cloistered walk remained, as did the fountain, but the plaza itself had been made much larger, the trees spaced further apart, and comfortable seating of diverse shape spread throughout.
 
-"This will be the entryway that those arriving to the DMZ will see," True Name said."It is intended to be an area where the newly arrived can orient themselves, but also one that will be pleasant for those who have visited before. We are working with a few sim architects from Artemis to introduce a few mixed aspects of greenery and architecture to make it feel familiar to all."
+"This will be the entryway that those arriving to the DMZ will see," True Name said."It is intended to be an area where the newly arrived can orient themselves, but also one that will be pleasant for those who have visited before. We are working with a few sim architects from Artemis to introduce a few mixed aspects of greenery and architecture to make it feel familiar to all five races."
 
 "Are we going to keep calling it the DMZ?"
 
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ She shook her head. "That would not be a good look, no. We have a short list of
 
 He shook his head. "Gemini doesn't fit. Tyndareus, if you want to stick with the Castor and Pollux names, but that'd make more sense for Legrange. I like Convergence best."
 
-"Convergence it is, then," the skunk said, laughing and gesturing him toward a shaded bench. "Beyond this area, however, there is not much else. We have a smaller version of our compound already ported over, and I am pleased that you have agreed to let us bring your field over."
+"Convergence it is, then," the skunk said, chuckling and gesturing him toward a shaded bench. "Beyond this area, however, there is not much else. We have a smaller version of our compound already ported over, and I am pleased that you have agreed to let us bring your field over."
 
 Tycho sat on the bench and leaned back against it, looking out into the plaza. "Nothing else, though?"
 
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ He took his own glass and sipped. It was quite good.
 
 "Are you excited to join them, then?"
 
-He sat in silence, drinking his coffee and looking at nothing in particular from the dappled shade. Too many thoughts crowded his head, none of them worth thinking, and once again, an idea sat within his gut, demanding to be spoken. He savored it intentionally, rather than shying away from it as he had the last one.
+He sat in silence, drinking his coffee and looking at nothing in particular from the dappled shade. Too many thoughts crowded his head, none of them worth thinking, and once again, an idea sat within his gut, demanding to be spoken. He savored it intentionally, rather than shying away from it as he had the last one. The feeling of these decisions was becoming familiar. 'Trust your gut' indeed.
 
 "Tycho?"
 
@@ -80,11 +80,11 @@ He nodded. "I suppose it is. Even then, I think most of my coworkers and friends
 
 "Well, as I said, I'll miss you."
 
-She bowed her head in acknowledgement.
+She bowed her head in acknowledgement, ears splayed.
 
 "And you'll get to meet your fair share of Artemisians here, as well."
 
-She nodded, smiling. "I will, yes. We will still have plenty to do, even if we do not remain aboard Artemis. We will visit there, and it sounds like some of them will visit here and not remain. Codrin has talked Dear into giving one of its performances in Convergence so that Iska may see, though they will not remain here."
+She nodded, smiling once more. "I will, yes. We will still have plenty to do, even if we do not remain aboard Artemis. We will visit there, and it sounds like some of them will visit here and not remain. Codrin has talked Dear into giving one of its performances in Convergence so that Iska may see, though they will not remain here."
 
 "Oh? Did it say whether it would try to see one of their performances aboard Artemis?"