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[IronyOwl]

High Oyster once again carefully considers his god's questions, and eventually gives answers. "The party names are many terms old, and have little meaning anymore. All three have ties to the fishing industry. They used to squabble with each other over fishing rights, but now the Lord Mayor assigns the right to specific species of fish to specific companies and everyone except for us is more or less fine with that arrangement."

"As for pollution, the fair skinned elves have invented an alchemical process by which they transmute the bones and shells of the sealife they catch into a substance that can be used as a fertilizer or explosive. A byproduct of their process is a toxic black sludge, which they dump into the harbor."

"Oh, that will be easy to test, then. I'll create a new species of fish and see how the Lord Mayor responds.

As for the pollution, how careless! Perhaps their gods aren't keeping as close an eye on them as they should be. Oh well, shouldn't be too hard to make life that can thrive under such conditions. Maybe even clean it up, if the Lord Mayor were to grant my belongings rights to all harbor life. Hm... that will be harder to test without explicit communication, though. How difficult."

She brightens up again.

"Speaking of which, tell me more about my new playthings! How many are there, what are they like, do they have any meaningful assets? Will I need to dismantle many or only a few of them for uselessness or disobedience? Are there any obvious weaknesses that need to be filled? I may have the parts for new servants, after all."

Koaring's confidence rises when he hears Dun voice a partial agreement with his position. He smiles in return, although he feels a bit more cautious than she appears to be.

"Safeguarding mortal will has worked out well enough in my home pantheon. I must admit it is quite old and well established, though. I have little comparison against other modes of operation, and I will wager that my teachers' philosophies will soon be put to the test in this more competitive environment. I think perhaps we aim in a similar direction, I never expected you to endure displeasure only for the sake of suffering through it. I only desire to point out that one may also alter the half of the balance that consists of one's own expectations."

"I am familiar with a different approach! Brutal and absolute slavery allowed the conquest of an entire continent, though it suffered from constant supply shortages and rearrangements when I was present. I intend to keep a much larger caste of devoted but free-willed servants to help manage and supplement the rest.

I don't understand what you mean by suffering displeasure, though. Do you intend to rely on independent powers or coercion?"

[Weirdsound]

"Oh, that will be easy to test, then. I'll create a new species of fish and see how the Lord Mayor responds.

As for the pollution, how careless! Perhaps their gods aren't keeping as close an eye on them as they should be. Oh well, shouldn't be too hard to make life that can thrive under such conditions. Maybe even clean it up, if the Lord Mayor were to grant my belongings rights to all harbor life. Hm... that will be harder to test without explicit communication, though. How difficult."

She brightens up again.

"Speaking of which, tell me more about my new playthings! How many are there, what are they like, do they have any meaningful assets? Will I need to dismantle many or only a few of them for uselessness or disobedience? Are there any obvious weaknesses that need to be filled? I may have the parts for new servants, after all."

"There are about 2000 of my people on this small peninsula. Another few hundred live away from the water among the humans and elves in the slums just outside of the city walls. As for assets most families own a cupboard full of herbs and drugs by which they practice medicine. Some own a nice set of surgeons tools. The well off ones own a library of medical texts, or perhaps a patch of scallops to farm."

He seems a bit uneasy about the probability that you will have to disassemble some of his people, but keeps talking regardless. "If an Otterfolk is useless, it is only because the city dwellers are preventing him from being useful. As for disobedience, I am unsure. We are used to following orders, and even being treated harshly. But ideas such as mass reshaping of our species, or selling our own corpses as a trade good are... well... quite unorthodox. I don't know what sort of reaction you might get to those sorts of decrees."

Your doll falls into contemplation again at the mention of weaknesses. "My people straddle two worlds without ever committing to one or the other. We will never be quite as good as the land dwellers at living on land, nor quite as good as the sea dwellers at living at sea. Not without divine help, anyway. Proficiency in many fields precludes a mastery of any, I'm afraid."

[Glass]

[null] remained at Lingbān's side for the remainder of the Saga, listening to them expound upon the goals and life of the Salvaged.

[Digital Hellhound]

Saga of the Rooster

Master Zhèngniàn pauses for thought. "The Warriors of Light exist to vanquish evil and protect good. But my temple is isolated up on this mountain. We get little news from the outside world. So we do little but train and prepare. I can assume that since Shizi thought you to be a good match for us, you must be a benevolent god. As such, we will make your interests our own. If you do not have tasks for us, means of transportation and communication would aid us in doing good without the need of specific direction from our god."

A benevolent god? That brought a smile to Qu's lips and a quick, grateful glance at Shizi. Yes. He would be a benevolent god. 'You must descend from the mountain. Tend to the land below. Heal its wounds. Comfort its people. We must restore this plane to the harmony and beauty it once enjoyed. I am not certain of how we may accomplish such a thing, but that is no reason to sit idle here in the heights. The mending begins with the smallest of things, I would think. I will return with gifts to aid you in this.'

Saga of the Pig

"What is oblivion?"

Qu blinked. 'Oblivion. The void. The dissolution of reality until nothing more exists. It is more than death. It is the endless absence. Do you not know of such things? It is what waits beyond the planes, beyond existence.'

He shifted in place. 'Or so I hear. I would not know of such things,' Qu said, with his most trustworthy and innocent expression.

[mightymushroom]

"I am familiar with a different approach! Brutal and absolute slavery allowed the conquest of an entire continent, though it suffered from constant supply shortages and rearrangements when I was present. I intend to keep a much larger caste of devoted but free-willed servants to help manage and supplement the rest.

I don't understand what you mean by suffering displeasure, though. Do you intend to rely on independent powers or coercion?"

Again with conquering continents at a time! thinks Koaring. These fellow gods must hail from far less stable worlds than mine. How sad. Then that thought forcibly reminds him that Qiángdà itself is inherently unstable – at least where mortals are concerned, with student gods coming and going on a whim . . .


He replies to Dun, "My father ruled absolutely, but not over a whole continent. He preferred the gentlest intervention that could support the good of the whole –" he searches for a word, not wanting to sound like a bumpkin "– community. And the –" again, trying to put his mortal mother and her sub-pantheon in the best light "– that is, my mother's land is administered by numerous gods but they often quarrel among themselves and oppose each other's actions. That nation prospers at its center but now that I look back there are difficulties along its margins they might cure with more, um, effective leadership."

"Perhaps that ought to be my purpose here, to experiment with the unfamiliar so as to have a greater extent of experience. It is best that I attempt more direct control, so as to know when and why it succeeds. I may soon be thanking you for your examples, Dun." He adds silently, And to learn when and how it fails.


 . . . and somewhere in the back of his head he asks himself just how long it has been since the Grand Phoenix's last cycle of fire and re-creation. Just why was She a midwife to a strange god who didn't fit into any of Her pantheons?

[Glass]

[Saga of the Pig]

Disappointed at their salutations being ignored, [null]’s lights shift to a grey-blue after a while, and they sit down, just listening to the conversation around them.

[IronyOwl]

"There are about 2000 of my people on this small peninsula. Another few hundred live away from the water among the humans and elves in the slums just outside of the city walls. As for assets most families own a cupboard full of herbs and drugs by which they practice medicine. Some own a nice set of surgeons tools. The well off ones own a library of medical texts, or perhaps a patch of scallops to farm."

He seems a bit uneasy about the probability that you will have to disassemble some of his people, but keeps talking regardless. "If an Otterfolk is useless, it is only because the city dwellers are preventing him from being useful. As for disobedience, I am unsure. We are used to following orders, and even being treated harshly. But ideas such as mass reshaping of our species, or selling our own corpses as a trade good are... well... quite unorthodox. I don't know what sort of reaction you might get to those sorts of decrees."

Your doll falls into contemplation again at the mention of weaknesses. "My people straddle two worlds without ever committing to one or the other. We will never be quite as good as the land dwellers at living on land, nor quite as good as the sea dwellers at living at sea. Not without divine help, anyway. Proficiency in many fields precludes a mastery of any, I'm afraid."

"So few? Well, no matter. I'll just make more space and food if I want you to make more of yourselves. Hehe, living things are convenient that way..."

"I will probably need to get back soon, so I will have to leave you for now. I like you, though, so things should be good for you in the future."

She continues snuggling her new pet until it's time to leave.

Qu blinked. 'Oblivion. The void. The dissolution of reality until nothing more exists. It is more than death. It is the endless absence. Do you not know of such things? It is what waits beyond the planes, beyond existence.'

He shifted in place. 'Or so I hear. I would not know of such things,' Qu said, with his most trustworthy and innocent expression.

She returns his puzzled stare. "I do not. I know of extermination, obliteration unto dust, and the yawning abysses of both sea and mind, but I am not familiar with this nothing-beyond-nothing. It does sound rather wasteful and boring."

He replies to Dun, "My father ruled absolutely, but not over a whole continent. He preferred the gentlest intervention that could support the good of the whole –" he searches for a word, not wanting to sound like a bumpkin "– community. And the –" again, trying to put his mortal mother and her sub-pantheon in the best light "– that is, my mother's land is administered by numerous gods but they often quarrel among themselves and oppose each other's actions. That nation prospers at its center but now that I look back there are difficulties along its margins they might cure with more, um, effective leadership."

"Perhaps that ought to be my purpose here, to experiment with the unfamiliar so as to have a greater extent of experience. It is best that I attempt more direct control, so as to know when and why it succeeds. I may soon be thanking you for your examples, Dun." He adds silently, And to learn when and how it fails.

Dun nods. "And I should experiment with less direct control, for similar reasons. In this manner, we might each uncover the strengths and weaknesses of ruling in a particular manner. It is good that we have such variety here."

[Shadowclaw777]

Between the Alpha-Huntresses words and thoughts, Elbakaepsnu gets the answers he is looking for.

The Ashen wastes cover a vast area. To the south they are bordered by high mountains. To the east, the fortresses of a developed nation. To the north and west, an inland sea too salty to support most life.

The mutated bodies of the 72nd are in no way standardized. No two are exactly the same, and no two can be said to have the same strengths and weaknesses. One general weakness of the Alpha-Huntresses people, however, is infertility. Only a handful of them are capable of breeding. Because of this, The Alpha-Huntress avoids picking fights where causalities are likely to occur on her side. She has grown to prefer ambushes under the cover of darkness. Her general strategy is to send flying scouts to spot interlopers, and then move in the bulk of her forces silently while the prey is resting and unprepared. Although disappointed that she cannot fight strong foes in pitched battle, The Alpha Huntress is proud of her ability to ambush and raid, boasting that it has been two ages since she has lost a soldier.

The 72nd have no true industry of which to speak. Interlopers seeking their fortune in salvaging the wastes are a common enough food source. They practice no agriculture and keep no animals, so they would starve if the fools stopped coming into their lands. As they rarely gain new soldiers, they rarely need to make new gear; Once every four to five sagas, the Alpha-Huntress will relocate her forces to a different cave, one that is less defense-able but hosts an iron mine, flux material, a foundry, and a forge. There they will spend some time crafting and maintaining steel weapons, armor, and ammunition before returning to their home cave. They lack a dependable source of fuel, so their ability to make steel is again dependent on what they can steal from the interlopers.

The Alpha Huntress reckons that the only three real resourses found in the Ashen wastes are iron, marble, and whatever wondrous magic and technology one might be able to salvage from the remains of the people who lived here before the war. If a dependable fuel source could be found, the ash the covers the ground could also be cooked into an aesthetically pleasing red glass. The Alpha-Huntress claims that shortly after the war monsters ran rampant in the wastes, but that she and her people hunted and destroyed them all. She does, however, consider herself and her army monsters, noting that they are far stronger than any other mortals, and have few interests beyond feasting and causing carnage.

The only other society to exist within the wastes is called The Salvaged. The Alpha-Huntress leaves them alone because their flesh is poisonous to eat, and their foolish attempts at trade play a role in luring in outsiders to hunt. Three kinds of outsiders regularly visit the waste. A race of steel wielding humans come from the fortresses to the east. Two peoples come from across the sea; A race of dwarves that sometimes bring magical and exotic metals with them, and whose boats are powered by coal which the Huntress can steal to fuel her foundry. There is also a race of humanoid sparrows who wield gear of bronze and practice air magics to drive their sail boats. The Alpha Huntress considers them the most delicious, but also the most difficult to catch.

As for who is the most desirebale target, the Alpha Huntress can only guess. After some thought she figures that the humans would the easiest, as she would not need boats to attack them, and has no doubt that if she wasn't tied down by the absolute need to avoid causalities that she could easily take their fortresses. As she has never truly traveled far beyond the wastes, she cannot speak to which target would be the most lucrative.

Elbakaepsnu  is amused at the current affairs of the domain that he is in, and spends a few minutes of time trodding over the cavern entrance where him and the Alpha-Huntress’s words about how this world works and the best way to exploits them, and then with a announcing voice, tells the 72nd Infantry his own thoughts and what is going to happen.

”Yes I now understand where your uselessness in areas are, the lack of sustainability is a problem I will have to fix with your Army before we can set our campaign towards the Ashen wastes. Do not expect in your next form of mutation to have the reproduction ability like the previous species you had, you may now be become asexual parthogenesisi mutants, egg-laying parasites on other mortals to reproduce more, or even meld your species with fungus and produce new soldiers and monster-power through mushrooms, Let’s say I am currently undecided on the best way to improve your ability to regenrativerly field more and more warriors on the battlefield. As for your industrial capacity, well don’t we have an easy solution right near my doorstep that can be used to create more weapons of war and sustenance. That is right, we shall enslave all of the mortals we plunder against taking them to our newly furnished fields and mines and shall be worked to very last ounce of strength and those that challenge their new position in life shall be fed and used for the creation of new mortals for my war campaign, and taking the resources of their boats and outposts that have such precious resources like ore, coal, and oil will allow us to continue our spread and dominance all over the Ashen realm. We shall never be the vermin and skulk in shadows no more, under my command but shall take what is truly ours!

Now these humans and dwarves, in another action can become our own tributes and satraps, providing us with sustenance and resources, enough where we don’t bleed them dry but also to make them think they know that we are in charge of their protection and a tax so that we don’t purge them from this world. It will and shall take a bit of diplomatic finagling, but humans are known to be less morally zealous than dwarves to their homelands and patriotism to their civilization, and will most likely be our first targets. The first will scoff at the idea of becoming tributary towards a roving clan, but when they see their castles and villages burned down, they will think twice and see that for their own survival will be our own claim. Now are their any outposts or other forms of excursions of their people of these three outsider species that we can go and raid, to make them understand their lot in life and the preposition I shall make to their civilizations as a whole?”

[Weirdsound]

Elbakaepsnu  is amused at the current affairs of the domain that he is in, and spends a few minutes of time trodding over the cavern entrance where him and the Alpha-Huntress’s words about how this world works and the best way to exploits them, and then with a announcing voice, tells the 72nd Infantry his own thoughts and what is going to happen.

”Yes I now understand where your uselessness in areas are, the lack of sustainability is a problem I will have to fix with your Army before we can set our campaign towards the Ashen wastes. Do not expect in your next form of mutation to have the reproduction ability like the previous species you had, you may now be become asexual parthogenesisi mutants, egg-laying parasites on other mortals to reproduce more, or even meld your species with fungus and produce new soldiers and monster-power through mushrooms, Let’s say I am currently undecided on the best way to improve your ability to regenrativerly field more and more warriors on the battlefield. As for your industrial capacity, well don’t we have an easy solution right near my doorstep that can be used to create more weapons of war and sustenance. That is right, we shall enslave all of the mortals we plunder against taking them to our newly furnished fields and mines and shall be worked to very last ounce of strength and those that challenge their new position in life shall be fed and used for the creation of new mortals for my war campaign, and taking the resources of their boats and outposts that have such precious resources like ore, coal, and oil will allow us to continue our spread and dominance all over the Ashen realm. We shall never be the vermin and skulk in shadows no more, under my command but shall take what is truly ours!

Now these humans and dwarves, in another action can become our own tributes and satraps, providing us with sustenance and resources, enough where we don’t bleed them dry but also to make them think they know that we are in charge of their protection and a tax so that we don’t purge them from this world. It will and shall take a bit of diplomatic finagling, but humans are known to be less morally zealous than dwarves to their homelands and patriotism to their civilization, and will most likely be our first targets. The first will scoff at the idea of becoming tributary towards a roving clan, but when they see their castles and villages burned down, they will think twice and see that for their own survival will be our own claim. Now are their any outposts or other forms of excursions of their people of these three outsider species that we can go and raid, to make them understand their lot in life and the preposition I shall make to their civilizations as a whole?”

The 72nd Infantry grows more and more excited as Elbakaepsnu describes his plan for them. The Alpha-Huntress is practically drooling by the time her god finishes. "With your aid master, we shall cast off the last shackles of our old existence, and become true and proper monsters! As for raiding the outsiders, we have never crossed the sea to see the Dwarf or Sparrow lands, and all the humans have nearby are their forts, farms, and fields. Most of us cannot eat plants, and their livestock is too heavy to carry away as corpses, but as a purely symbolic gesture we would have no trouble attacking their farmers or shepherds."

[null] remained at Lingbān's side for the remainder of the Saga, listening to them expound upon the goals and life of the Salvaged.

The more your listen to Lingbān talk, the more his ambition becomes apparent. He clearly wants the salvaged to become recognized as more than just savage survivors in the wastes. He talks about mastering and leveraging the limited supply of artifacts in the region to gain some sort of sustainable future for his people. In the long run, The Salvaged will need a new source of magical energy on which to survive, and as there are few magical raw materials in the wastes, they must eventually be able to travel elsewhere. Perhaps they might gain acceptance into and settle a city, or perhaps even take one by force if desperation truly set in.

He eventually gets around to explaining the living situation of his people. The only threatening beings in the wastes are the White Locusts, who leave the salvaged alone, therefore the salvaged spread themselves thin and live out in the open with little reguard for defending themselves. There are three main camps: One by the mountains to the south where the salvaged are trying to restore a tunneling machine, one by the sea to the west where the salvaged are trying to restore a boat, and Lingbān's personal nomadic camp, which moves between various promising dig sites.

All Non Pig Sagas:

Eventually Shizi tells you that you have spent enough time conversing with your first mortals, and escorts you back to The Manor Lǜsè, where you are returned to your chambers and soft quarantine

Saga of the Pig:

Suddenly the discussion at the feast is interupted by the striking of a loud gong. Several dozen lesser gods, demi gods, and powerful mortals rush into the chamber, laying down a red carpet from the door to the head of the table. Then he enters. The Emperor of Scholars is a lithe humanoid standing about ten feet tall. Between his long, flowing, green robes, his white gloves, and his golden tusked mask in the shape of an elephant's head, it is possible to discern what your host truly looks like.

The emperor walks in perfect balance and control of his power; he radiates no energy, so it is impossible to directly gauge his strength, but hanging from his arm wearing the robes of a common concubine is a goddess. Her body is cast from bronze, and she bears an aura of imense power. Among you, Only Qu has ever met a being stronger than this concubine, and even the defector's wicked omnicidal mother isn't that much more powerful.

As mighty as the Emperor's companion is, however, you do not get to admire her for long. The Emperor of scholars gives his concubine a light squeeze on the shoulder, and a simple instruction: "Go wait in my chambers." The mighty concubine bows low, kisses her master's feet, and leaves the chamber. Your host then turns his attention to the gathered students before him.

"Greetings students. I am the Emperor of Scholars, creator of The Plane of Qiángdà and founder of the Academy of Divine Harmony. If we meet on school grounds, you may simply call me headmaster, or simply Professor Jiangxuéjīn. Here, however, at The Manor Lǜsè, I must insist you address me with some honorific such as your grace or your excellency." His voice is soft, gentle, yet powerful. As if he is whispering but somehow still the loudest voice in the room.

"Before we proceed, I must ask. Do any of you have any feedback, questions, concerns, or suggestions regarding the soft quarantine and acclimation process you just went through? We are always working on tweaking it to make it less boring and degrading toward our incoming divine students. At Divine Harmony, we value the sovereignty of divine will above all else. There is no justice unless the gods, even the young student gods, feel as if they are doing and becoming whatever they need to do and become."

[Glass]

[null] raises their hand. Why were we doing it? They told us a thing about acclimating to the rules or something but I didn't notice anything?

Belatedly, he bashfully adds Um, my Lord?

[mightymushroom]

[Saga of the Pig]

Disappointed at their salutations being ignored, [null]’s lights shift to a grey-blue after a while, and they sit down, just listening to the conversation around them.

[null] raises their hand. Why were we doing it? They told us a thing about acclimating to the rules or something but I didn't notice anything?

Belatedly, he bashfully adds Um, my Lord?

As his argument? conversation? with Dun wraps up, Koaring notices the quiet wood and metal god. Embarrassed at not remembering the being's name, he fails to think of any good conversation openers before the Emperor arrives. The being may be shy? patient? – but their question for the Emperor is a good one.

The Emperor of Scholars reminds Koaring of the Grand Phoenix in some ways, as would be expected of two beings who rule their respective planes. The Emperor's concubine, not so much. She is gaudy: an ornament brought to this meeting for no discernable purpose than to prove that she can be brought. His reaction of disgust might not be entirely noble, however, since he also envies the Emperor for enjoying her company.

[Weirdsound]

[null] raises their hand. Why were we doing it? They told us a thing about acclimating to the rules or something but I didn't notice anything?

Belatedly, he bashfully adds Um, my Lord?

"In simple terms, it is to make sure that you all experience Ages and Sagas at the same rate as the other students, and to ensure that terms end at the same time for each class." The emperor explains, "You didn't notice because what was being changed was largely how you precieve change. An eye cannot observe itself. Dragging the process out over an age makes it much less noticeable as well. I could have zapped the changes onto you all at once, but on average, we here at the academy have learned the incoming student is more likely to be hurt or offended by such a rapid alteration than he, she, or it is to be hurt or offended by an age of relative boredom."

As his argument? conversation? with Dun wraps up, Koaring notices the quiet wood and metal god. Embarrassed at not remembering the being's name, he fails to think of any good conversation openers before the Emperor arrives. The being may be shy? patient? – but their question for the Emperor is a good one.

The Emperor of Scholars reminds Koaring of the Grand Phoenix in some ways, as would be expected of two beings who rule their respective planes. The Emperor's concubine, not so much. She is gaudy: an ornament brought to this meeting for no discernable purpose than to prove that she can be brought. His reaction of disgust might not be entirely noble, however, since he also envies the Emperor for enjoying her company.

Koaring cannot tell for sure, but for the briefest moment he feels as if The Emperor is glancing at him from under the golden mask. "I do apologize if my gaudy entrance and choice of companion was a tad distasteful. Oftentimes students are sent to me for protection as much as they are for education. On the off chance one of my charges is being hunted or chased, a show of power oftentimes puts them at ease. There is very little that can pose a threat to my domain or those upon it."

Qu cannot help but get the feeling that the emperor is speaking of him.

[mightymushroom]

"Many pardons if I have offended, O Majesty of Qiángdà. I am unused to the ways of your court and would not dispute their wisdom." In spite of his words, Koaring is unfazed by the Emperor's attention. If anything, he draws himself up a little, unconsciously imitating one of the swan gods about to defend a philosophical position during their endless debates. And since I did not speak aloud I know that this, too, is a show of power.

[Weirdsound]

"Many pardons if I have offended, O Majesty of Qiángdà. I am unused to the ways of your court and would not dispute their wisdom." In spite of his words, Koaring is unfazed by the Emperor's attention. If anything, he draws himself up a little, unconsciously imitating one of the swan gods about to defend a philosophical position during their endless debates. And since I did not speak aloud I know that this, too, is a show of power.

The emperor chuckles. "Do not worry too much about those ways Koaring, unless they are of interest to you. I will be glad to have you out of my 'court' and into my academy as soon as this feast concludes. You do not offend. The error was mine. I always get so excited meeting new students. Sometimes my focus slips for a moment, and I lose track of what is said and what is left unsaid."

He leans back in his chair, and grabs a glass of wine from the banquet. Rather than drink it through his mask, he slowly assimilates it into his being in such a fashion that you can see the level of liquid slowly drain from the cup. "I have reviewed the applications that each of your sponsors have sent to me before admitting you all to the academy, but I have not heard from any of you yet. Do any of you have any goals for your time in my care aside from 'graduate'?"

[IronyOwl]

Dun squishes herself down and inclines her head in a subservient bow. This is clearly a being of absurd power, which makes her little more than a game tile in his presence. She hopes to fulfill whatever purpose he may have for her adequately, but doesn't think such a being could have much in the way of detailed, genuine concern for such lowly materials.

Accordingly, she doesn't want to address such a power, but he has given her a command to share opinions, and she has some. She'd no sooner remain silent than hold out money from him.

"O Exalted One, I found it strange to do so little and be so isolated for so long. It is not in my nature to remain idle, nor to be without my own meager possessions.

I have many goals here, O Master of Masters. I wish to collect dolls for my own amusement and pleasure, to experiment with methods of rulership and management, and to dwell in luxury and adoration. It should go without saying, O Great One, that I have no intention of becoming satisfied with my current usefulness, and wish always to become more skilled and valuable."