"It is not apparent to me that we need especially complicated reasoning to handle this issue.  Why not just say among ourselves that we are uncertain about whether you are Chosen only of Asmodeus or Chosen of some other or Chosen perhaps of both, and then proceed in the face of that uncertainty?  We know of Hell that our Lord is eager to have you, that your price there is somewhere beyond vast, He has instructed you to serve him well in this world and come to Him in Hell to be treasured by Him.  It is not a negligible imprimatur, whether the original spur for it was Asmodeus or an old pact or new bargain."

"What you are looking for, I think, is some assurance that your theology is correct, that your plans for Hell are correct, and this is a kind of assurance that is problematic to get into a habit of seeking, even if you are Chosen of Asmodeus and no other.  What if you are roughly on the right track, but destined to arrive at better theology and better plans in eighty-one days instead of nine?"

"And if you are not originally Chosen of Asmodeus and no other?  Then He nonetheless instructed you to serve Him well in this world and be raised high in it, and indicated that you were a soul who might be exceptionally treasured by Him in Hell, and Hell's vast price on you is justified to us as centering around your ability to produce better devils, though we are told that of other matters it is forbidden to speak.  We can scarcely assume your ideas wrong, even if we somehow know for certain that you were singled out by some other god."

"So we must proceed regardless with care for the case where your plans make sense, and care for the case where they do not.  You are loyal to us either way, for in either case you are the Carissa Sevar that stands before me and whose thoughts lie open to my examination.  You do not need to play games against a version of yourself opposed to us whose mind I cannot read.  You are simply yourself planning across two possibilities, and we can simplify away all the complications of which Keltham spoke in his own case, where possible people he is dealing with have intentions and wills explicitly opposed to their other possible selves."

"It is not apparent to me that we need especially complicated reasoning to handle this issue.  Why not just say among ourselves that we are uncertain about whether you are Chosen only of Asmodeus or Chosen of some other or Chosen perhaps of both, and then proceed in the face of that uncertainty?  We know of Hell that our Lord is eager to have you, that your price there is somewhere beyond vast, He has instructed you to serve him well in this world and come to Him in Hell to be treasured by Him.  It is not a negligible imprimatur, whether the original spur for it was Asmodeus or an old pact or new bargain."

"What you are looking for, I think, is some assurance that your theology is correct, that your plans for Hell are correct, and this is a kind of assurance that is problematic to get into a habit of seeking, even if you are Chosen of Asmodeus and no other.  What if you are roughly on the right track, but destined to arrive at better theology and better plans in eighty-one days instead of nine?"

"And if you are not originally Chosen of Asmodeus and no other?  Then He nonetheless instructed you to serve Him well in this world and be raised high in it, and indicated that you were a soul who might be exceptionally treasured by Him in Hell, and Hell's vast price on you is justified to us as centering around your ability to produce better devils, though we are told that of other matters it is forbidden to speak.  We can scarcely assume your ideas wrong, even if we somehow know for certain that you were singled out by some other god."

"So we must proceed regardless with care for the case where your plans make sense, and care for the case where they do not.  You are loyal to us either way, for in either case you are the Carissa Sevar that stands before me and whose thoughts lie open to my examination.  You do not need to play games against a version of yourself opposed to us whose mind I cannot read.  You are simply yourself planning across two possibilities, and we can simplify away all the complications of which Keltham spoke in his own case, where possible people he is dealing with have intentions and wills explicitly opposed to their other possible selves."

"It is all too easy to introduce complications that sound like Aspexia Rugatonn.  The true qualification for being her is being able to simplify them away those complications that were not needed, and introduce those that were missing."

"It is not apparent to me that we need especially complicated reasoning to handle this issue.  Why not just say among ourselves that we are uncertain about whether you are Chosen only of Asmodeus or Chosen of some other or Chosen perhaps of both, and then proceed in the face of that uncertainty?  We know of Hell that our Lord is eager to have you, that your price there is somewhere beyond vast, He has instructed you to serve him well in this world and come to Him in Hell to be treasured by Him.  It is not a negligible imprimatur, whether the original spur for it was Asmodeus or an old pact or new bargain."

"What you are looking for, I think, is some assurance that your theology is correct, that your plans for Hell are correct, and this is a kind of assurance that is problematic to get into a habit of seeking, even if you are Chosen of Asmodeus and no other.  What if you are roughly on the right track, but destined to arrive at better theology and better plans in eighty-one days instead of nine?"

"And if you are not originally Chosen of Asmodeus and no other?  Then He nonetheless instructed you to serve Him well in this world and be raised high in it, and indicated that you were a soul who might be exceptionally treasured by Him in Hell, and Hell's vast price on you is justified to us as centering around your ability to produce better devils, though we are told that of other matters it is forbidden to speak.  We can scarcely assume your ideas wrong, even if we somehow know for certain that you were singled out by some other god."

"So we must proceed regardless with care for the case where your plans make sense, and care for the case where they do not.  You are loyal to us either way, for in either case you are the Carissa Sevar that stands before me and whose thoughts lie open to my examination.  You do not need to play games against a version of yourself opposed to us whose mind I cannot read.  You are simply yourself planning across two possibilities, and we can simplify away all the complications of which Keltham spoke in his own case, where possible people he is dealing with have intentions and wills explicitly opposed to their other possible selves."

"It is all too easy to introduce complications that sound like Aspexia Rugatonn.  The true qualification for being her is being able to simplify away those complications that were not needed, and introduce those that were missing."