001 - Video

[avianesque]

[What can be seen of his face beneath the shadow of his hood is his mouth and the dim impressions of his nose and eyes. One hand remains planted on a surface off-screen, and the other clutches at the cloak he wears, securing it just below his chin. Far from threatening, he looks scared, ready to bolt at any moment. Awkward. Distrustful.

He's soft-spoken, contributing to the overall aura of fear that he gives off.]

My father told me I should stay home. He said he dreamed I met the Corsi on my Migration, and worried that I wouldn't come home again. They aren't real, the Corsi; they're great, deformed creatures with black feathers and burning red eyes. They're the monsters in the shadows who eat small children and tempt men and women to spiritual corruption and mortal peril. Humans call them 'Devils'. Bogeymen.

Hau - his name. He has always had strange dreams, and no one really pays them much mind. He once dreamed the sky was falling, like the story of Chicken Little. You know that story? It's a parable for us. The lesson depends on the listener: know what you're talking about, or, alternatively, don't listen to the advice of madmen.

[The speaker motions skyward with his free hand, indicating - well. The sky falling. It becomes a dismissive gesture, the hand flapping in a soft, fluid motion before falling back to its resting place.]

Anyhow, he's an old man and he's growing feeble, and I remember thinking he just wanted his youngest son to stay with him. That isn't a bad thing, to want your family to care for you. To miss them. And I would have: I would care for my father when he grows sick, and I'll miss him when he dies. He knows that is what is in my heart. But he's much too old to entertain fears of Bogeymen.

I'm sure he thought it was a terrible omen, to dream of them while his youngest child prepares to leave with no destination in mind. I shouldn't have fought so bitterly with him. It's hard to fight new fears, to console against the unimaginable.

[After a long pause, he tries to continue with some humor in his voice, but he clearly can't manage to summon it up.]

Maybe if my father had told me he dreamed about the taste of beer, I would have stayed home. Maybe if he told me I would be required to wear this - [He extricates his Soul Gem, in its silver-winged setting, from beneath his cloak to display it to the camera.] - I would have gone to the Kai instead.

Maybe I would not have ended up here.

[And quieter now, he adds with a note of bitter regret:]

I wish I had listened.

[VIDEO]

[highprofilerichkid]

[It's been a while since Tony's made a public broadcast on the network. He doesn't look harried or frustrated now: this time he has good news. His eyes are gleaming with excitement, and he seems very pleased with himself.]

I've got an announcement for anybody who's interested in technology and engineering - kedan and foreigners. I've been working with the College to put together a community space in the Sky Sector. Sort of like a... library, for practical engineering. It'll have cutting-edge equipment, all kinds of tools, tons of space to mess around in, and even some basic supplies for anyone to use.

Tech's developing really fast in Keeliai, and it'll develop even faster if we collaborate and pool our knowledge and resources. This will be a place where we can do that. Where everyone can learn at their own pace, on their own schedule, and work on the projects they're interested in. With the situation with Tu Vishan and the Chihuelans... I think it's important for everyone to have a chance to contribute.

So, it's open to anyone. It's free to use for anyone at the College and students get first dibs, but if you're not enrolled here and you still want to get in on it, there's just a monthly membership fee to cover operating costs. I'll do my best to keep plenty of membership slots available. [He grins.] It's a lot cheaper than buying all your own equipment. Also, for people who want a private workspace, there's going to be some that you can rent by the month.

There'll be a bunch of classes, too. The advanced courses have a small fee, plus some money for supplies, but the basic courses will be free for students and members. I'll even be running some free courses open to the public. [Not something that will earn the College any money directly, but it'll be good for community goodwill, and encourage donations and new members.]

Just clean up after yourself, take care of the tools, and replace the supplies you use. And sign up for things early: there may be waiting lists for classes and workspaces. [He'd hate to turn people away, since that's sort of against the principle of the whole thing, but, sadly, his time and resources are not infinite.]

I'll be working full-time, maintaining the equipment and teaching a lot of the classes. When I'm not busy with those, I'll be available to help people one-on-one. I'm also looking for a couple people who can be around to watch things when I'm not there, so we can keep the doors open twenty-four-seven.

[And now that he's covered the basics, his expression turns a little more serious.]

Technology in Keeliai shouldn't just be used for profit or politics: it should be used to make everyone's lives better. We should be sharing with each other and learning from each other and building new things, not just fighting over what we have. That's what this is all about.

If you're looking to make a profit, you're better off at SI. [A case of pot meet kettle if there ever was one, but Tony's not above taking a few well-earned digs at his former company. Anyway, he's always been in favor of technology for the greater good: it's just the "not-for-profit" aspect that's new to him.] Most of the stuff we work on in the classes will be for the College and other public institutions. And anything that gets made here, the patent [not a concept with a direct translation into kedanese, but the translation magic will convey the gist of it] belongs to the College. That's not to cheat anyone out of their inventions or anything like that - it's so that everyone can use and build on any advances we make.

This will be a place for foreigners and kedan to work together to make Keeliai a better place for everyone. If you want to be a part of that... You know where to find me. [He grins again, and ends the feed.]