The history nerd listens closely. He doesn't hide is utter lack of faith in anything Judith is saying, as he takes notes while remaining quiet.

"I can tell it is going to be difficult to explain this without some kind of demonstration. And without liao... Manufacturing ghosts is highly unethical..." 

It's clear she's not sparking any kind of inspiration here. Why couldn't she have been a priest with a bag full of liao?

"Essentially I want to - not come across as an ignorant spectacle, so I haven't accidentally prejudiced people against the Way of Virtue before I have the chance to - at least attempt to research ways of accessing the mental state required to create auras, view and affect the soul."

"So mental states are important for your supernatural experiences? We love hearing about mental states and supernatural experiences! Do you have some technique? Do you need any kind of equipment? We can get you meditation pillows and mats, or beads and instruments. We're really interested in hearing about any visualization techniques you're using!"

"Yes - what liao does is shortcut the process of getting into the correct mental state to manifest auras.

I would love to try some of your technologies for this - it's possible to reach that state without liao, but very rare, and I don't have any formal training in even the techniques for using liao - I have seen it done, and some of the underlying principles are the same as I use for magic, but...

You don't have magic either, do you? I tried to detect magic once and the area was entirely dead, I've never felt anything quite like it, like when all the birds go silent?

I didn't sleep very well so I'm not sure if that's why I didn't regain mana or if I just... Won't. Not that I can do anything impressive without mana crystals, and if your whole world is as magically dead as the hospital was, I suppose we're not making any..."

"Well, we've been quite sure about the nonexistence of magic for many years now. But for all we know, it could exist somewhere, we just haven't realized it was magical. I'm sure someone'll sponsor sending you a trip all over the place to find if you're able to detect magic! This could be incredibly important."

"...probably not as important as figuring out your reincarnation situation - or maybe you do all fall into the Abyss like orcs who don't fight, I don't have any way of telling from here, I suppose!

But yes, the unique thing about the human spirit is that it can spontaneously create auras under the right circumstances, but those circumstances involve being really intensely Virtuous - if your world is mostly tamed, that might be significantly more difficult, the very few that do it without training tend to do so in situations of extreme adversity. I wish I could say 'right, I'll just become a Paragon then' but I am not, actually, even sufficiently good at Pride to think that is likely to happen. I think the best approach there is probably to - relate the tales of the Paragons and Exemplars and the Virtues to some of your people who are already very good at either going out and doing things or intentionally inducing unusually intense states of mind in themselves, and see if we can get anywhere like that.

Which won't work if you do have different souls - or no souls at all, I suppose, although I'd be very surprised. I did initially think you might all be Heralds - magical creatures that can do most of the things ensouled beings can, but are made of magic instead of animated by a soul - but unless I have transited bodily into the Realms..."

Oh. That is. That is not a great thought. It is perfectly consistent with everything that this is a particularly bizarre corner of the Day or Autumn Realm, especially Day, somewhere artificially maintained with a dead magical signature. Or that she lost her skills when - when she became a copy - a Herald - a creature without a soul...

To the volunteer, it looks like she has been struck by some kind of horrific realisation and just... stopped.

The volunteer barely reacts, expecting that Judith would make it clear if she needed to be comforted or reassured in any way.

"Hmm. I don't think we have human spirits, unfortunately. Spontaneously creating auras sounds fantastic! We'll tell some particularly skilled meditators about some promising new techniques. They might be able to glean something from learning about Paragons and Exemplars."

We sure don't have any magical abilities, and we're quite sure we don't have souls either, miss. It sounds like there's something scary about being transited to the Realms? Speaking purely hypothetically, of course, what would be the downsides or issues if that were to happen to you?"

"My soul wouldn't be able to follow me," Judith replies, slowly and dully. "I would just be - a creature of magic and matter, like the Heralds. There... there would be no reincarnation that I was a part of."

"What's kind of the worst-case scenario, then? What are you missing because your soul isn't following you here?"

"A future," replies Judith, somewhat despairingly. "The possibility of paragonhood. The ability to... imprint Virtue on the world.

I'm not really sure what the point of doing things is, without a soul. Eternals do things because they're bound to their nature and Heralds because they're bound to their originator - or the Realm itself I guess.

I don't think it really helps them, though, they just can't help themselves."

"Paragonhood and imprinting virtue sounds interesting. But this thing about the point of doing things... I mean, why would having a soul make it so there becomes a point to doing things? It sounds like the sort of thing that you can't... do by putting in elbow grease and moving things around, if you get my point? Don't you just do things because, you have a desire to do them coming from somewhere?"

"It's - a virtuous circle. You want to do things because your soul prompts you, and it's worth doing things because it improves your soul.

I - without one - don't really want to do things? Other than, you know, needing to maintain a body."

Judith helpfully begins to attribute the yawning void of motivation within her to a potential lack of soul rather than to the lack of good sleep and general upset of being thrown into an unfamiliar world.

"Well, we don't have souls, and we still want to do things. Maybe you'll find out that you won't need a soul to have wants after all?"

"I guess.. I'd eventually become native to the Realm. Do your - bodies wear out, though? I think it varies a lot with Heralds..."

"Yes, we do age. Although we try our best to slow it down, and we try keeping our bodies as perfect as possible once we feel like we've aged enough that aging any more would probably cause irreversible damage."

"So - that's it.

I'm on a deadline and I don't even know - what for.

And... I can't actually tell if you're just lying to me to increase cooperation. Because I don't have any liao and I never did learn to Insight anyway."

Ugh, this conversation is falling into a horrible well of self pity. Judith decides she does, in fact, have at least momentary preferences and one of them is Not That.

"What sort of things do people try to do here? And, uh, I guess I'm meant to be preparing for a worldwide projected communication, so, what are people interested in? Other than, uh, food prep, which I am still bad at."

Maybe she can at least work out if she's in a Day or Autumn situation, and how to impress the local Eternal and get in on that life extension.

"Well, people try inventing things that improve everyone's life? Or have fun exploring forests and mountains? Or like racing cars? Or just meet people? And they're interested in everyday life in foreign cultures, basically anything you say would be interesting to them."

Sounds like Day. Or it's presenting itself as Day to extract value from her, but they seem to be generous so far.

Judith chats through a few of the things that might happen at the broadcast interview so she can avoid looking stupid, and then thanks the volunteer for their time and arranges lunch and costuming with Mr H.

Mr H can get Judith one of the near-endless available food options ready for lunch. Ron takes Judith's measurements, and has a different robot arrive with a tabard and cloak for Judith to have on over her quarantine suit, meaning that she'd look appropriately theatrical for the broadcasted interview. Eventually, the projector displays a famous TV show host, with an audience of several anthropologists and historians, mentioned by name but not shown on screen.

"Hi, curious seekers! I've been introduced to the most fascinating interview subject I've had in the history of this show, a woman who by all accounts came here from a different dimension. Please let her introduce herself, to a warm welcome!"

Judith then becomes visible on the screen, with her head next to that of the TV show host and a few credible-looking academic types.

Judith puts on her best Enthusiastically Addressing Conclave voice, as that's her closest reference point.

"Hello, everyone!

I'm Judith of Cantiarch's Hold, and I met a giant snake in the Maze of Zoria which brought me here. It's not entirely clear where 'here' is, or which parts of me we brought along, but I imagine we'll get onto that later."

"Yes, let's." The show host tries to remain unaffected and neutral, but is put off-balance by Judith's words.

"Cantiarch's Hold sounds like a fascinating place. Did you grow up there?"

Oops, that was apparently not what they were after. Oh well, if they're really Day they'll live with it and if they're Autumn they deserve it.

"Yes, although the Hold is actually spread across several geographical locations. I grew up in Cantiarch Minor, the holding in Reikos - I realise that isn't going to mean much to your viewers, a separate territory some miles away that was overrun by enemies a few years back. I also kept our Waystation in Bastion - that's basically an inn for pilgrims - for a while. And the main Hold is based in Casinea, which is the original place that the Cantiarch held against the Patricians..."

She's rambling again, isn't she? Oh well, if they didn't want a fluent history lesson they shouldn't ask a Highborn about her Chapterhouse.

"Yup, thanks for the info. We're happy to have a bunch of place names for the moment. But you kept what you called basically an inn for pilgrims. What was that like? What were your responsibilities? What pilgrimage were these waystations used for?"

"Bastion is the heart of the Imperial faith - so much so, that it's one of the recognised signs of the Paragon - that's someone who truly understands the spiritual world and can perform miracles - to take a pilgrimage there.

Obviously that makes pilgrimages quite popular! The Waystation of the Cantiarch is a fairly mid-range hostel, it's designed not to be too imposing or expensive so that more people can access pilgrimage, although it isn't a sleep-on-the-floor Navarr wayhouse.

I enjoyed seeing all the pilgrims come and go, hearing their stories, helping them out with practical matters. As keeper of the Waystation it was essentially my job to make sure everything kept running - we had staff to do the day to day making of beds and sweeping of hallways, and an excellent kitchen staff for food, but it was my job to hear complaints, hire people, fill in when someone couldn't do their job, and generally keep the pilgrims happy and have them speak highly of the place.

I'd often spend the day pointing out the sights of Bastion on the maps that we kept, answering questions about their significance, but just as often I'd be urgently trying to get more toilet paper, or taking sheets back to the washing house and making sure they got the stains out this time."

"Wow, sounds excellent. So, you mentioned how Navarr wayhouse is a sleep-on-the-floor place. That must be because the pilgrimages really matter! What are they for, what do they mean? What makes them important?"