- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
Posted by: Mr_Clark
Momentary glimpses of surprise flittered across the other Majal, and Fasul recognized those expressions, and the weight they carried.
The looks of one who realizes he does not stand before a fool. There is regret and despair in their faces, for the weak and stupid are easy to mold and control in order to serve whatever purpose they have engineered for me.
The uncomfortable moment was ended when Geul stepped forward and placed his arm around the shoulders of Fasul once more.
“Time is short Fasul, I shall take you down to the floor where we shall prepare for your account,” the elder Majal explained as he led Fasul away.
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The procedure for making an account before the assembled inside the Palintheum was not as easy as one might think. To guard against unsubstantiated testimony, and false truths, the Majal deigned with giving his or her account on a particular topic before the Palintheum would be situated within a cerebral chamber, strapped into a miniature dome that was situated beneath the floor of the assembly. On occasions where it was needed, the dome could be called to rise from its depths, earning it the nickname “Ashion”, an obstructive use of preexisting words within the central Majal dialect. The Majal dialect would be considered an agglutinative language, as it was mainly based around morphemes being joined together, though the races of Majal that initially were birthed on the northern continents of Lithium spoke a more poetic form, that took much longer to say things, yet often sounded nicer to those listening. The “Niantic” form, as it was called at this stage of Majal development, was often used in plays and other forms of phonetic entertainment as it lent a sophisticated and alluring sound to the dialogue.
Ashion was a melding of an ancient phrase, “Aisin hesina ionma ni” which when translated became, “From darkness, come perception”. When said in the Niantic form however, the phrase became, “Taken from darkness, shall perception be birthed”. The Ashion was aptly named, for it was perhaps the most intrusive creation to ever emerge from the Majal technological advancements. The machine would literally pull free the memories, thoughts, and images from the consciousness of whatever creature it was connected to.
It was not unheard of for a soul to be apprehensive when placed within its unseeing interior. The thriving hum of the equipment was the only sound heard, and the dome itself was thick, and incapable of projecting images of what was carrying on outside of its small shell. Though there was no physical pain, the host would be subjected to whatever memories the Ashion was sent to retrieve and display. For some it meant reliving painful moments.
This was what worried Fasul as the dome was closed and locked from the outside. He did not know what areas of his past could be of any use to the Palintheum assembly, and though he dared not to imagine it, he felt the trickle of fear that the others would seek to confirm his convictions. His trepidation came not from worries that his morals were not up to the task of close scrutiny but instead were birthed from his belief that memories relating to Absolon may be unearthed.
I spend every moment thinking of him, for these rare times when I am free of that burden, I cannot allow them to delve so deep into my past.
Fasul was, however, already placed within the core of Ashion. While he was not strapped down in any way, the dome had been closed, and there appeared to be no apparent method of opening it from the inside.
“Geul! Do not begin this process! I must speak with you! Geul!”
His shouts earned him no response, aside from the hum of the interior growing in volume.
Blast! I have assented to be their puppet for this cause, but I will not give them free reign over my mind!
With a cry of frustration did Fasul throw himself against the encapsulated walls that held him within Ashion. His efforts, though great, were wasted. The dome did not budge, and from the exterior no help come.
The sounds generated from Ashion were strong enough that Fasul could feel the vibrations of sound as they passed through his body. Pulsations through the dome grew in intensity, and Fasul began to fear for his life. The explanations given to him by Geul spoke nothing of this.
Light flooded the interior, blinding him as an unseen force shoved against the Majal’s body. There was only a moment to consider what it was that struck him before Fasul impacted the shell of the dome. His head cracked soundly, causing his already impaired vision to blur and darken. The world was swimming around him as inertia gave way, and his body slumped against the ground. Blinding light bathed everything Fasul could perceive at that moment, and in an instant, it was replaced with darkness.
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Awareness and light were foreign entities to him during this time. Floating amongst images of his past. Images of his future.
Fasul was trapped within a world of darkness, but had no understanding of that fact.
So terrible a thing it is to be a prisoner, yet have no conception of your imprisonment.
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Wow.