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[daozhangs]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, XIAO.XINGCHEN. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 018.07.154.55 *** XIAO.XINGCHEN has joined 018.07.154.55 <XIAO.XINGCHEN> You have reached Xiao Xingchen. <XIAO.XINGCHEN> I am often away from my laptop, but I will do my best to answer as soon as I'm able.

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[daozhangs]

No, thank you, ( he replies, regarding sugar or honey. he enjoys the simple taste of tea itself, and beyond that, sweet things have lost most of their appeal as of late.

so instead, he listens with tea in hand as obi-wan speaks of advanced technology - a concept which, admittedly, xingchen hasn't the faintest clue how to picture properly aside from that which he has experienced here - and then of vehicles which soar through the stars.

his brow knits under the edge of his bandaging in an amused sort of puzzlement. ) 'Through' the stars? Are they not as a tapestry wrapped around the world?

[hadthehighground]

[Obi-Wan can respect the desire to have tea with nothing added. Xingchen is a purist! Obi-Wan meanwhile enjoys having a little honey in his.

He pauses though at the man’s clear lack of understanding about cosmos. That’s to expected though as he seems to come from a primitive world.]

Far from it, my friend.

This world and all others I know of are spheres that hang in a void that we call space.

Each world, that is a planet, circle around their sun or multiple suns. The stars are other suns that are very far away and have their own planets that circle around them. Each such arrangement is known as a star system.

[daozhangs]

( pardon xingchen, processing this concept for a long moment, though he takes a sip from his tea to fill some of it. (it's quite good so far, but it's also too hot to properly taste the flavor just yet.)

the question he finally settles on is, ) And that's every world? ( every world, even his own, is a sphere hanging in nothingness, somehow circling another sphere hanging in nothingness, despite having no sentience and no tethers by which to connect them? )

[hadthehighground]

[Patiently giving Xingchen time to absorb all of that, Obi-Wan quietly sips at his own tea. He knows full well that it’s a lot for someone who wasn’t aware of what could lie beyond their world. Even for those who knew it was still an experience when you first traveled outside your home planet.]

Yes. I could go into the science of it all, but that would take a great deal of time.

[Much more than just one afternoon of tea. So he would try to keep it simple for Xingchen unless he really wanted to learn about such things.]

p.s. re: other tea party, should we do a new starter for post-gosalyn too for efficiency purposes?

[daozhangs]

No, that's quite alright, ( he assures with a faint shake of his head. ) I'll take your word on the matter.

( another sip of the tea, then he sets it back on the table, fingers still wrapped around it. ) It must be difficult to navigate, then? In a realm without constellations to look for? ( xingchen himself has alternative methods for obvious reasons, but he can't imagine a whole star-traveling group of people resorting to his own makeshift means. ) Unless advancements in technology have solved that, as well.

[hadthehighground]

Actually we have complex navicomputers that calculate the route for each jump into hyperspace.

[Obi-Wan paused thoughtfully as he quickly realized he would have to explain that as well. Everything that was so common and ordinary in his galaxy would probably seem strange to his friend here.]

Each planet and star system is very far away from each other, so we travel through what we call hyperspace at speeds faster than light.

We use hyperspace lanes to travel through space much like you would walk on a road. That and the navicomputers keep ships from colliding with each other or whatever else might be out there.

[daozhangs]

( though the words and ideas presented are entirely comprehensible in a conceptual kind of way, xingchen can't even fathom how such a thing might even be thought up, let alone put into practice. he wasn't even aware that light had a speed. )

I'll admit, this is all... very much over my head, ( he says, ) But it's uplifting, in a sense, to hear all of that which humanity is capable of if you give it a bit of time to work. ( he takes another sip of tea now, and finds that it has finally cooled enough to properly appreciate the flavors.

it earns an appreciative little 'mm', and - ) My friend, you have quite a knack for blending tea. It's rich, but not overly bold.

[hadthehighground]

[Obi-Wan smiles a bit to himself as he thinks. Knowing that where he’s from would be hard for his friend to imagine, and yet it was often taken for granted back in his home galaxy. There were definitely things he missed having in this place. Things that made life easier.]

It took us a long time, and it certainly has its rewards. Though there is often a price for advancements in technology as well.

[And while Xingchen can’t see it, the nymph’s eyes light up at the compliment to his tea. Though he is clearly pleased as he speaks.]

Thank you, I’m glad that you like it.

[He then places a small bag of the dried tea in front of Xingchen which he had already prepared in case he did enjoy it.]

Here. As I promised, you can take some with you.