Invisibly, and also inaudibly, two high level wizards spent a truly heroic length of time trying to have straight faces at each other and it's not totally clear who failed first because it was basically simultaneous and now they're clinging to each other and spluttering and shaking their heads like Keltham's thoughts are a fly buzzing at their ear.
"I -" says one of them, the one who doesn't need to breathe because he has a necklace of adaptation - "- reject the explanation that this is what people are like without free will or with better training in not using it."
The other one doesn't have a necklace of adaptation and does need oxygen and so takes several minutes to catch his breath. "My theory is that, probably, if I can trust my premises here, Cheliax exists."
"We should add to the list of things that go wrong with a honeypot setup, 'he decides that the presence of girls implies that his ejaculate is very valuable and he should not give it away for free'."
"Should we, though. When it will absolutely never ever happen again."
"Well, if we commission thousands of him, maybe in a few generations it's a common problem."
"Gods forbid."
"From what I know, the gods seem supportive."
"You know if Nethys gives people too much of Himself they're driven mad and destroy themselves. Maybe if Abadar gives people too much of Himself they're driven mad and end up like this."
"I have heard as many as several things about the pharaoh of Osirion and that seems probably wrong."
"But was it presented with the observations and inferences separated, with numbers for every sentence? No? I submit that you know nothing about Osirion except that a book-writer wanted you to believe that it exists."
"Observation: Osirian women can't own money. Inference: therefore, the pharaoh probably does not oblige them to pay him to fuck them."
"I didn't hear any numbers."
"Thirty seven. Point one five. Eight hundred ninety six."
"Ah. A credible claim, then."
They stare at each other for a moment, then burst into giggles again.
