It will not interfere with a later spell; if she wishes to attempt that much in the face of its probable futility, she is welcome to do that.  (Esta has never before seen Mariona do it; but he is aware that many other women have been so made as to find spinning, sewing, and tailoring more relaxing than simply doing nothing.)

He weighs for a long time, and carefully, whether to say what he is about to say.

"There's a proverb that goes, to understand the meaning of a [divine intervention], look at the counterfactual for what would have happened otherwise."

"I have now seen enough of this world's outside to appreciate that most places here are not places where a tidal bore is about to hit, right next to Merrin, who is wearing her armor and knows how to deal with tidal bores, and can take you back to a safe base to recover.  The [Outer God] that sent us here, sent me to a moment where I would lose my [Holding Bag], but not ultimately die.  It accomplished this by sending me here four months after you arrived, with time to build your base.  It would not even have been as much of a guess as I am accustomed to it being for our own [god]; because in this place, unlike the planet I remember, it should be possible for an [Outer God] to directly observe the future."

"If my Bag would have sufficed to get us out of here, quickly, then the [Outer God] wanted for that to not happen.  Straightforward, in a way.  We understand little of the different motivations of the different [Outer Gods] that are not simply and directly lethal to us; but from our own perspective, They sometimes seem to play out like bizarre games, if they are not simply and entirely inscrutable.  If the [Outer God] can want to play a game with us, or do something more inscrutable than that to us, it can want that game to not be over within its first [day]."

"And if that is what It wants, and It can see the future and we can't and It is vastly more intelligent than us, It is liable to get what It wants and not what we want."

Sewing will not interfere with a later repair spell; if she wishes to attempt that much work in the face of its probable futility, she is welcome to do that.  (Esta has never before seen Mariona do it; but he is aware that many other women have been so made as to find spinning, sewing, and tailoring more relaxing than simply doing nothing.)

He weighs for a long time, and carefully, whether to say what he is about to say.

"There's a proverb that goes, to understand the meaning of a [divine intervention], look at the counterfactual for what would have happened otherwise."

"I have now seen enough of this world's outside to appreciate that most places here are not places where a tidal bore is about to hit, right next to Merrin, who is wearing her armor and knows how to deal with tidal bores, and can take you back to a safe base to recover.  The [Outer God] that sent us here, sent me to a moment where I would lose my [Holding Bag], but not ultimately die.  It accomplished this by sending me here four months after you arrived, with time to build your base.  It would not even have been as much of a guess as I am accustomed to it being for our own [god]; because in this place, unlike the planet I remember, it should be possible for an [Outer God] to directly observe the future."

"If my Bag would have sufficed to get us out of here, quickly, then the [Outer God] wanted for that to not happen.  Straightforward, in a way.  We understand little of the different motivations of the different [Outer Gods] that are not simply and directly lethal to us; but from our own perspective, They sometimes seem to play out like bizarre games, if they are not simply and entirely inscrutable.  If the [Outer God] can want to play a game with us, or do something more inscrutable than that to us, it can want that game to not be over within its first [day]."

"And if that is what It wants, and It can see the future and we can't and It is vastly more intelligent than us, It is liable to get what It wants and not what we want."

Sewing will not interfere with a later repair spell; if she wishes to attempt that much work in the face of its probable futility, she is welcome to do that.  (Esta has never before seen Mariona do it; but he is aware that many other women have been so made as to find spinning, sewing, and tailoring more relaxing than simply doing nothing.)

He weighs for a long time, and carefully, whether to say what he is about to say.

"There's a proverb that goes, to understand the meaning of a [divine intervention], look at the counterfactual for what would have happened otherwise."

"I have now seen enough of this world's outside to appreciate that most places here are not places where a tidal bore is about to hit, right next to Merrin, who is wearing her armor and knows how to deal with tidal bores, and can take you back to a safe base to recover.  The [Outer God] that sent us here, sent me to a moment where I would lose my [Holding Bag], but not ultimately die.  It accomplished this by sending me here four months after you arrived, with time to build your base.  It would not even have been as much of a guess as I am accustomed to it being for our own [god]; because in this place, unlike the planet I remember, it should be possible for an [Outer God] to directly observe the future."

"If my Bag would have sufficed to get us out of here, quickly, then the [Outer God] wanted for that to not happen.  Straightforward, in a way.  We understand little of the different motivations of the different [Outer Gods] that are not simply and directly lethal to us; but from our own perspective, Their interventions sometimes seem to play out like bizarre games, if they are not simply and entirely inscrutable.  If the [Outer God] can want to play a game with us, It can want that game to not end in its first [day]."

"And if that is what It wants, and It can see the future and we can't and It is vastly more intelligent than us, It is liable to get what It wants and not what we want."

Sewing will not interfere with a later repair spell; if she wishes to attempt that much work in the face of its probable futility, she is welcome to do that.  (Esta has never before seen Mariona do it; but he is aware that many other women have been so made as to find spinning, sewing, and tailoring more relaxing than simply doing nothing.)

He weighs for a long time, and carefully, whether to say what he is about to say.

"There's a proverb that goes, to understand the meaning of a [divine intervention], look at the counterfactual for what would have happened otherwise."

"I have now seen enough of this world's outside to appreciate that most places here are not places where a tidal bore is about to hit, right next to Merrin, who is wearing her armor and knows how to deal with tidal bores, and can take you back to a safe base to recover.  The [Outer God] that sent us here, sent me to a moment where I would lose my [Holding Bag], but not ultimately die.  It accomplished this by sending me here four months after you arrived, with time to build your base.  It would not even have been as much of a guess as I am accustomed to it being for our own [god]; because in this place, unlike the planet I remember, it should be possible for an [Outer God] to directly observe the future."

"If my Bag would have sufficed to get us out of here, quickly, then the [Outer God] wanted for that to not happen.  Straightforward, in a way.  We understand little of the different motivations of the different [Outer Gods] that are not simply and directly lethal to us; but from our own perspective, Their interventions sometimes seem to play out like bizarre games, if they are not simply and entirely inscrutable.  If the [Outer God] can want to play a game with us, It can want that game to not end in its first [day]."

"And if that is what It wants, and It can see the future and we can't, It is liable to get what It wants and not what we want."

Sewing will not interfere with a later repair spell; if she wishes to attempt that much work in the face of its probable futility, she is welcome to do that.  (Esta has never before seen Mariona do it; but he is aware that many other women have been so made as to find spinning, sewing, and tailoring more relaxing than simply doing nothing.)

He weighs for a long time, and carefully, whether to say what he is about to say.

"There's a proverb that goes, to understand the meaning of a [divine intervention], look at the counterfactual for what would have happened otherwise."

"I have now seen enough of this planet to appreciate more viscerally that most places here are not places where a tidal bore is about to hit, right next to Merrin, who is wearing her armor and knows how to deal with tidal bores, and can take me back to her safe base to recover.  The [Outer God] that sent us here, sent me to a moment where I would lose my [Holding Bag], but not ultimately die.  It accomplished this by sending me here four months after you arrived, with time to build your base.  It would not even have been as much of a guess as I am accustomed to it being for our own [god]; because in this place, unlike the planet I remember, it should be possible for an [Outer God] to directly observe the future."

"If my Bag would have sufficed to get us out of here, quickly, then the [Outer God] wanted for that to not happen.  Straightforward, in a way.  We understand little of the different motivations of the different [Outer Gods] that are not simply and directly lethal to us; but from our own perspective, Their interventions sometimes seem to play out like bizarre games, if they are not simply and entirely inscrutable.  If the [Outer God] can want to play a game with us, It can want that game to not end in its first [day]."

"And if that is what It wants, and It can see the future and we can't, It is liable to get what It wants and not what we want."