how not to do interworld contact | Glowfic Constellation

"Mages should get to have rights?"

(Shaking shaking shaking they probably don't want her to kneel, it'll be an unexpected movement -)

No.

"Humans should get to have rights why?"

If she understands correctly they just should. She thinks some people have different other reasons.

"No mages should get to have rights why?"

It sure is turning out unexpectedly difficult to get her to explain whether this is about some sort of impulse control deficit.

(Shaking shaking). "Because they're mages. [The other word]." And, because apparently at some point terror and the need to say it, something, becomes just too much -

"...We've been taught better, please-"

(It has not occurred to her at all that that might be what they're trying to get at, even as a possibility.)

"Taught better?"

It's not allowed for mages to think things like mages should have rights. They might get ideas and get above themselves. So they're taught how that's not allowed, and punished if it looks like they're doing it.

That's probably all they're going to get on that topic. Time for more productive explanations.

If they do ask more about magic -

She's is designated to the CIA and does magic for CIA teams. Like in the hallway before, though she wasn't in field cover then and the human wasn't actually an agent. (Possibly not a good idea to remind them of that, but it's not like she thinks they forgot.) (She doesn't mention field-mage-ness).

They still want to know more about her magic.

This isn't a very fun tightrope.

She does wards, and teleportation if needed, and fights enemy mages if needed though that's rare because it tends to get you arrested. And does some healing. (She thinks those are all things they're already seen, except for the healing and that she has something about healing will be obvious as soon as they hurt her at all.)

"Humans magic?"

(...that might be something they shouldn't know right now, but it's a yes or no question and she can't avoid it and they'd know if they somehow showed up on earth and they have the human as well anyway.)

No. They can do some things, like the collars, but they don't have powers, and she doesn't know anything about that.

She keeps trying to ask things.

If she's asked about more magic she'll try saying that she generally is just taught magic she needs for her job, because teaching her other magic would take resources for no reason and be more dangerous. (This is true. Also she needs more magic for her job than she mentioned, and she used to be in the magehouse where they were taught a greater variety in preparation for different job possibilities. But she's not going to say that, if she can avoid it.)

If she's asked more about technology she'll say that technology isn't her job area and she isn't taught technology information she doesn't need to know. She doesn't know much about technology. (It's not, though it's sure more a part of it than that implies, and she isn't but it's a different line than that sounds like. Compared to how much she think there is to know she sure doesn't, so that's true. And, likewise for the not saying if she can avoid it.) If needed she'll volunteer information on random (hopefully) mundane technology - toasters toast bread! Airplanes have oxygen masks! Climate control systems make rooms comfortable temperatures for humans!

She is scared and repeats she doesn't know things at whatever opportunity. (She is, in fact, scared, though she doesn't know if that affects them in any way.)

She'll try to pull up more random information about rules and laws if they want. It's illegal to walk around naked in public. It's illegal to smoke near no smoking signs. It's illegal to have sex with human children. In some places it is against the rules to have meat.

She'll tell them all sorts of more things about holidays and sports if they want, and also assorted games and pieces of media.

Her voice is kind of getting tired from all this talking but she doesn't imagine that's important any more than she imagines it's important she's been standing this whole time. (She's stood longer. She doesn't usually talk this long.)

Eventually the audience is over. The woman on the dais gestures for her to leave. Someone will lead her back to where she left her translator.

She follows. She waits to see if she's allowed to put it back on.

Yup.

Once she's done that the woman who flew up here with her asks if the translator works on writing.

No; they have translators for that but she doesn't have one. If she learns reading in general she can try reading outloud to herself, that can somewhat work.

"We can read to you," says the cat from earlier. "We have some laws you need to follow while you're here. Some of them will be the same no matter what. Some others will be different depending on which part of the empire you live in."

"The place you landed earlier has more buildings designed for people shaped like you than this place does," says the cop. "It's where I'd go if I were you and stranded here."

She doesn't know why they're saying the last thing to her but of course is hardly going to object or ask about it.

"Might I take notes again?" Not needed-for-their task but it's probably worse to forget something than to ask.

She notes the bit about an empire with parts.

"Yeah, that's probably a smart plan if you can't read Hari," says the cat. "I've got copies of the imperial laws, the laws of the state of Har, and the laws of the city of Mar Geru. If you decide to go back to Anavel Sani that'll mean you need someone to find you their laws and read them to you. Anyway do you think you've got enough space left on that paper?"

That presumably depends on how many laws they have. She thinks humans can have a lot.

"I don't know, sir."