iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Perhaps the countryside will benefit him too. Already he has merged with the house here I had furnished in his absence. I am unsurprised by his ability to do such an absurd thing, but, at least those rooms won’t go to waste now.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 19h

The trip from inner Bonta to the far southeast village is a long one, but not nearly as much as it once was between Astrub and Bonta before the floods. By walking house or otherwise. I can remember the last instance Luis moved us. Times were tense. These are better circumstances, finally.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Invite them both. Seeing you all in the same place again would be a balm. And besides, the more lines in the water, the higher the chances we’ll catch something worthwhile. Your goldsmith’s heart wants one of those gems to work with, I imagine.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Three people I have known now relied or rely on a bird of some kind to keep watch for them. I have to admit I’m being convinced it’s an alluring utility to have. Some of it is nostalgia, though. I had forgotten until recently the security of having one perched nearby in an overnight camp.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I think it’s something I would be happy to attend. We should bring someone who is not as invested in the fishing aspect to serve as a lookout, though. I would hate to be snuck up on and lose a potential catch. Aruna, perhaps, if not your Pokemon.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Well, I could have Luis move himself a district over. That would certainly cause a stir. The Bontarian people of today may not even know their neighbour was and is a living house.

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

After so much time spent in the country, what I need now is some good city excitement. It’s been years since I’ve seen a boufbowl match in person. Something like that, maybe. Preferably without the post-game riots.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

My words aren’t accusatory. Learning is not a one-time process, even for the longer lived. One can always benefit from a little extra reexamination from time to time.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

I’m in. But details, if you please.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

That way of thinking can be dangerous if left untempered. “Better” is highly subjective. A mad king will purge a class of people and call it good, for example. I have seen it happen.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

An unfortunate truth, but not the only one. Many I’ve known turn to more productive means. Only the mad and cowardly choose the destructive opposite.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

The matter of time dilation between worlds is one I may never get used to. For us it has been close to a month, but the dates shown on here suggest otherwise. But what a month it’s been, in any case. I’m ready to return home by now. Much to do, much to say.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

But it’s these periods where I find myself restless. With my kids and the authorities I worked for, I was rarely given the space to relax like this. Without them now, it feels unnatural. Finding that balance between rest and simple inaction or activities is a difficult thing.

020

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Often that results in long excursions anyway, like how it used to be. Next month, for example, another is planned. Barely following the conclusion of recovery from the last one.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

My retirement is a condition in name only. Though the whims of the Bontarian kings and queens are no longer mine to answer, they may still call for me, and I will still provide them with guidance. But between those unusual circumstances, it’s up to me to decide what to do now.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Yes. And in idleness there is stagnation. It benefits no one.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

I do not miss my busy days of endless tasks. But there is something to be said about staying occupied.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

The inescapable heat of summer is one of the few things I haven’t missed about travelling.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

If an all-out fight is what they wanted, they would visit a carnival where typical brawls between volunteers take place instead.

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

Maybe to those unfamiliar. But the extent of that violence is most often limited to tackles, or propelling opponents away with magic-charged equipment, on the way to a goal or for fan hype. Nobody wants to see the players stop scoring goals and devolve into fist fights or cheat -too- cheaply.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

It’s a sport that’s only grown in spectacle and popularity over the past hundreds of years. You might even say it’s culturally significant. The stadiums are huge, and they are always packed and lively with the stomping and cheering roars of its fans.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

But a match without some amount of brutality is even more rare, and considered boring to the fans. There are some teams who rely on brawn and incapacitating their opponents. Others rely on confounding speed. And some nations like to add challenges to the game as a whole, determined by the fans.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

The teams themselves are comprised of five individuals. Each is equipped with gear—mitts, boots, battering shields, depending on their role—enchanted with limited magic charges per round, which give their user a quick boost in speed or strength. Outright brawls are rare, the point isn’t to fight.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

A popular contact sport the world over, at least in mine. I’m told it’s comparable to the common Earth sports of American football or soccer, but here in the World of Twelve, it’s much more… intense. The aim is to score goals on the opposing team’s side of the field by almost any means necessary.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

Compared to things I have seen now in other worlds, it surprises me how little technology has advanced in my own. Not that I complain. For example, the magic of a boufbowl match would be lost if it was only watched through a screen.

100

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

I would watch too many daytime dramas in my retirement if it had, I think.

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

That great actor’s descendant telling me of her antique films last week has been on my mind lately. It’s probably a good thing the gelevision never caught on as a common household appliance in the modern age.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

The inns and hotels I don’t mind. They served as something of a stand-in when my own home was inaccessible for years, and for that I’ve grown an appreciation for them. But, that only made finally returning all the sweeter. A stable place to go back to that you can call your own can’t be beat.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

But even with a ward against them, it’s disorienting to still be aware I would have had some nightmare if I could. The tension is there. The memory of whatever cruel imagery might’ve been is not.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

The countryside is much calmer these nights without the scrutinising gaze of a certain dragon. A welcome reprieve for at least the next few years.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

The same can often be said about finally returning home to sleep in your own bed after a long adventure, though.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

There is nothing quite so refreshing as sleeping under the stars again.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

I would argue that’s true for most nations. But when two of the most renowned teams are up against each other in their rival’s home, these “celebrations” are better described as riots.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

This city has never really outgrown its penchant for outrageous sports celebrations. If anything the energy for it has only increased throughout the ages.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

There is a certain unique frustration with being an old antique dealer, though. Imagine being hit on the head by the perch-staff held by a ghost and not knowing where that same item exists on the material plane, if at all. Maddening.

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

In a tale that comes full circle, it is the grandson of my former informant who succeeded him that I recommended her to. And it is one of the few benefits of being so old and so well known. I get to take part in and observe stories like this.

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

How could someone have such a thing, I asked her. And she is no less than the descendant of a famous actor of the time. His relics have been passed down generations. The films have been kept in as pristine condition as one can manage for so long. Not to me, but they will fetch a fine price.

100

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

I suppose I’m just nostalgic. Something similar has happened today. A stranger near the edge of the city called me over with promise of something I might find interesting or know of. But how right she was! A collection of film from hundreds of years ago! Nearly a millennium! From my own childhood.

100

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

He was a skilled artisan and knowledgeable collector with leads on many items. Many of which I was already invested in one day locating. It was a tragic accident which took his life. Quite recently, in fact. I believe I even mentioned it here when it happened. A sad loss.

100

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Once, a man targeted me personally to deal a sentimental antique to. He knew of me, and of my values, and knew exactly what he was doing when he pitched it to me. Later he told me it was never intended for anyone else. That man became my personal informant for years. That part, he did not expect.

100

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

The drawback of being so well known is that on occasion I will be flagged down to appraise an item of interest someone happens to have. They see me, storied owner of an antique and adventurer supply shop, and know I will either have insight, or want it for myself. They are usually right.

100

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

It has been, what, almost a year now? My strength has finally recovered completely, it seems. Perhaps to my own detriment. I’ve gotten too restless these past few weeks.

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Perhaps not. But a self-proclaimed power-seeking usurper tells a tale of its own. Tell me why, then. Why pursue such power and notoriety in this endless cycle? What do you stand to gain from it? Or is it simply nature?

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

I did say “usually”. Being the outlier is not the accomplishment you seem to think it is.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Usually dragons have more sense than that. A pity.

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Of course you are. Of course you won’t. The only thing that stops a fool is their own demise.

010

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

I have no lectures to give this time. Only observations. It is a tale and tragedy bound to repeat regardless of intent.

000

Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

All too often these stories end the same. All too often the seekers may themselves be victims.

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Joris @liminalstasis.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

I have heard enough stories from those I’ve met to know now that covetous sources of power are surprisingly common across the worlds. Be it a dragon egg, a strange gem, or other item, there is always something divine to be sought after. And there will always be misguided men who seek to obtain it.

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