Difference of Culture (1/4)
[Author's note: These 4 chapters may seem to get political on the surface, but that's really not my intention here.]
[This series of chapters (Difference of Culture) is about Haalfrin coming to terms with Lareen's era and his own being so wildly different. He can't grasp how the people in this modern era think so differently than himself - an ancient man.]
[These chapters are a character arc for Haalfrin - not a stupid political rant from the author. Self-insert rants from authors are just plain stupid.]
[Haalfrin himself does have some political opinions about stuff, but I don't personally agree with everything he says. I'm writing him to be in character. He's not a stand-in for my own political beliefs. In fact, I hate real-life politics with a passion.]
[Fina also has some views on some things, but I don't quite agree with her either. Just remember that due to her position as the head of a thousand different clans who all hate each other, she's grown to be a negotiator at heart. She thinks that the cure to everything is just for everyone to understand everyone else's beliefs.]
[Just remember. The politics in this book has absolutely nothing to do with real-life politics. Non-fiction politics = stupid. Politics in fiction = fun.]
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Haalfrin ends up going back to the Valor Hall, and he spends many more years there. Of course, The Gamans have begun sending him newsletters, detailing the current events in Lareen. There's also a business page on the paper that describes new inventions and new companies.
One day, Haalfrin reads the paper and finds out that the Foxman and the Gamans have made a thriving business together in making Possession dolls. People in Lareen are starting to become more accepting of Spirit Magic (under the Gamans' influence), and the Foxman's career begins thriving.
In between reading his newspaper, Haalfrin is sure to practice his magic; he'd hate to get rusty, after all!
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One day, Dakka shows up… except the old dragon is dressed in the same Lareen tunic that Haalfrin is used to seeing on Lareen men.
"What are you doing, wearing that?" Haalfrin asks with a wry smile. "I didn't even know that they come in that size."
Dakka covers his chest protectively and puts on a fake, mocking blush, "Oh…<3! You like my clothes!?"
"Ugh…," Haalfrin rubs his arms. "I just got goosebumps…"
"Anyway, to answer your question, I just thought that they were comfortable. That's all," Dakka answers.
'Well, it's certainly better than going bare chested…,' Haalfrin thinks. That's how a lot of dragons choose to dress – or rather, NOT dress.
"Anyway, Haalfrin…, you never visit. Why are you always cooped up here all the time?" Dakka asks with crossed arms. "I'm always the one who has to drop by and visit YOU."
"I can't travel as fast as you can," Haalfrin shrugs. "If I travel to your place, then I'll be leaving my Gate unattended for several days."
"…But this place is drab and cold…?" Dakka says slowly.
Haalfrin looks up at the opulent palace walls and the plethora of decorations the Arkin have filled this place with. 'Drab? Cold?' he thinks. 'Well, at least compared to HIS home, it is.'
"Who cares if this place is a little boring?" Haalfrin replies, "I have a job here. What if something unexpected happens, and me and the men aren't ready to fight?"
The dragon just looks at Haalfrin in pity, and he pulls out a large tablet made out of a pure, yellow-white mana stone. Dakka taps his finger on the top right corner of the tablet, and several glowing letters appear on it. He then reaches forward and puts it in Haalfrin's hand.
"What's this?" Haalfrin asks.
Dakka gives a short reply. "Well, the people down below have gone crazy inventing a lot of interesting things. I know you're probably bored up here, so I thought I'd leave it with you."
"What IS it?"
Dakka's head dips down a little, and he says in a lower voice, "Well, this artifact can make people see images in their heads. Rather… Uh… It's hard to explain. Here, it's like this…"
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Dakka goes into explain what his gift does.
First, the thing is called a "FM Tablet." 'F' stands for Felvar, which means "exchanging" in Soul Script. 'M' stands for "Maywyn", which means "thoughts". People started called it a "Fam Tablet" for short.
Basically, there's an enchantment on the tablet that lets you record your thoughts on it. You can even edit the recordings to make the images inside more vivid.
After that, you can either choose to store these images somewhere else, or you can share them with other people's Fam Tablets.
There's even a large network between all of these Fam Tablets (thanks to the Rehkin's Spirit Magic) that allows you to share images with each other even across the world.
People often use these Fam Tablets for simple communication, though larger companies have started using this new technology to create a new medium for story telling.
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"…And that's basically what it does…," Dakka finishes saying.
"Why were you acting so hesitant earlier?" Haalfrin asks. "You kept looking around, like you were doing something wrong when you were giving this to me."
Dakka leans down, cups a hand next to Haalfrin's ear, and he whispers in a slightly terrified voice, "It's the wife… She says that I'm on this thing for far too long every day. She'd probably step on my tail again if she found out that I'm giving you one."
The dragon suddenly wags a finger, and a strong force picks Haalfrin up and sits him down on one of the chairs in the corner of the room. Dakka then lumbers after him and sits next to him. "Anyway, wanna watch some cool stories?"
Just thinking about all the cool things that his friend hasn't seen yet, Dakka can't help but thump his tail.
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Of course, since Dakka is still unsure of how well Haalfrin is going to receive the Fam tablet, he starts off with showing him some of the war stories…
… aaaaaaaaaand instead of actually enjoying the stories for what they are, Haalfrin is busy the whole time with pointing out how inaccurate these Fam stories are.
"If that main character talked back to his commander that way, he'd be imprisoned or killed right away! Goodness... was this made for children?"
"No! Don't just have your whole army charge forward like that!!! What's wrong with their commander!?"
"Why are those assassins wearing black? It's a snowy, noon day. Are assassin's obligated to wear black? No! They'd rather dress in normal clothes to blend in."
Dakka sees Haalfrin interrupting the show several times, and he can't help but twitch his eyebrows. "Um… Haalfrin? Do you want to stop watching?"
"No. Why?"
"Well….," Dakka says as he scratches his head awkwardly, "I'm getting the feeling that you're not enjoying this."
"But I am enjoying it?" Haalfrin says with a strange look on his face. "I mean…" Haalfrin goes quiet because he's not sure how to put his thoughts into words.
It's just… spending time with a friend warms his heart. Haalfrin would only ever be comfortable enough to voice his true opinions around a brother he trusts. It really does feel good to voice his thoughts without any filter.
Besides…, isn't criticizing something part of the fun?
"You mean…," Dakka eggs him on….
"I mean that it's fun to spend time with a bro."
"I-if you say so…" Despite Dakka's stony face and stiff posture, Haalfrin can hear the dragon's tail thumping on the ground. "Anyway, let's keep watching."
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Haalfrin and Dakka watch stories on their Fam Tablet for hours on end. The dragon only goes home when the sun starts to set.
Just before Dakka flies out the window, he turns around and says to Haalfrin, "Bro… This world has moved on. I know you want to guard the Valor Hall, but I have too much respect for you. I don't want to see you waste away and refuse to enjoy life while it passes by you. You're old now. It's OK to let go."
Dakka then gestures out the balcony. Down below is a mini city that's been built over the past few decades – all sprawling around the World Gate. "It's ok. This World Gate doesn't need your protection anymore."
Haalfrin's will is shaken for a moment, and he goes silent for a moment.
After several seconds, Haalfrin's heart hardens, and he replies in a low voice, "No. This is my place. What if an accident happens? What if things suddenly go very wrong? What if you're busy dealing with another invasion from your World Gate?."
Dakka let's out a heavy, disappointed sigh, "Huh…. Alright. Until next time." He turns around and leaps out the window – not even bothering to beat his wings in the process.
Haalfrin watches the dragon disappear over the horizon, and he goes back inside.
Just as he closes the balcony shutters, he sees a glowing Fam Tablet on his dresser. 'Did he forget this?' Haalfrin wonders. 'No… He definitely has hundreds of spares. He probably left this for me."
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After Haalfrin's introduction to the Fam Tablet, he doesn't actually touch it for a while. Instead, he spends his days flitting between feeling bored and training his guts out.
Other than there being aches that weren't there before, nothing feels too different about training his body. Well, because of his old age, most of his training time is spent keeping his body in shape – mostly jogging.
Frankly, he doesn't have that much time anymore to train new techniques, though he's still sure to keep his old techniques sharp and well-practiced.
Every now and then, though, Haalfrin will suddenly lose all motivation to train, and he'll go days – sometimes even weeks – without training. Instead, he'll lay on his bed and eat unhealthy food.
What does he do when he lays down? Nothing much, other than thinking.
It's these long periods of aimless thinking that really makes Haalfrin start to develop depression again.
It's just… every time he sits still for more than two seconds, he has this nameless, empty feeling in his life. He can't quite put it into words himself, but something feels very wrong with his life.
'Who knew that peace could be so hard? Isn't peace what I wanted? What's the point of fighting for peace if the end result is bland and tasteless?'
'If I can't fight, then what am I good for, exactly? Am I just supposed to merely exist in hellish limbo for thousands of years until I expire to old age?'
'Where's Freyya? I want to see her again…'
It's these kinds of thoughts that plague his mind.