[ It's more the technical details that he doesn't want to get into - doesn't matter how interested you are, "how the brain shield works" is classified intel. But he also doesn't feel Ben needs to know all the details of the conversation, however brief. Cole will know more precisely what Qubit's apologizing for.
Ben's explanation tracks with his prior experience, anyway. Qubit's known enough psychics to know they tend to see the world ... rather differently. And is it any wonder? The whole point is that they're extra-sensitive, particularly if they can't turn it off. ]
That's about what I figured. The first words out of his mouth were "Are you a person," as I recall.
[ But what should Ben explain to him, exactly? That's a bit tricky. ]
What I explained to you, I suppose. You might describe it as a shield, if the analogy helps. It's purely defensive, it can't cause him any harm. And... ultimately, I want him to understand we're on the same side. He's got nothing to fear from me.
[ Ben winces privately. There are so many things he likes about Cole, but tact isn't one of his strong suits. ]
I'm sure he didn't mean to hurt your feelings. As far as I can tell they've got a lot of options in his world in the person-plus category. Like... spirits and demons and people possessed by spirits and people possessed by demons and probably a ton of other things, too.
[ He considers a few moments, but he can't see any potential harm in passing along Qubit's side of things. ]
Okay, I can do that. But I can't guarantee it's going to make a huge difference. Even if I tell him you say you're on his side and don't mean him any harm, being around you might still scare him. Fear's not the sort of thing you can just switch on and off after all.
Understood. Thank you for your help, at any rate. He seems a decent fellow, I hate to distress him.
[ Which is true, but not the whole truth. Part of him can't help thinking about this in tactical terms. A telepath who instinctively and visibly fears you, even if it's nothing to do with your actual thoughts, is very bad optics. Even bringing Ben into the mix serves a dual purpose. It's true, Cole might continue to fear him, even knowing what his deal is - but Ben will be able to articulate it better if someone asks why.
He is also going to quietly leave out the fact that his shielding is the kind of thing he can switch on and off. There are some points on which he is not willing to compromise, and that's a big one. ]
What sort of place is he from, out of curiosity? I thought his attire looked a bit [ pause ] rustic, but that doesn't mean much.
[ Ben doesn't suspect motives anything like that at all; he's a fair bit less naive than he had been as a kid, but some part of him is still fairly easy to manipulate. He assumes it is a question of misunderstanding, and that Qubit really has no reason for contacting him other than worrying about Cole and wanting to clear the air. ]
He is. I mean, he literally is compassion, embodied. Hard to get more decent than that. If it's any help I'm pretty sure I distressed him the first time we met. Different reasons, but still.
[ He honestly doesn't know if Qubit and Cole could ever come to understand one another, the way he and Cole had. The shielding might make that a no go. But it doesn't hurt to give the guy some hope and reassure him it wasn't unheard of. ]
It's a place called Thedas. They've got spirits and demons, like I said, but also elves and dwarves and I'm pretty sure dragons? It seems basically medieval. Horses and swords, you know. Kings and knights and poverty and oppression. The kind of world with, like, dungeons.
[ Ben had seen the inside of one of those dungeons, yesterday. It isn't an experience he's likely to ever forget. ]
[ So one of those swords-and-sorcery realms. A world like that, brimming with magic, does lend itself to some extremely improbable forms of life, but... ]
I'm not sure I follow. He's... the embodiment of an abstract concept?
Yeah. He's a spirit, not a human. He literally is Compassion. He can sense when people are suffering or need him, and he came to a dying mage named Cole who didn't want to be forgotten and so he sort of... absorbed his memories and identity and made the current version of himself.
[ Ben isn't sure he's explaining perfectly - understanding Cole and who and what he is now doesn't mean he's the best at summarizing it for others. But he is doing his best. Because he doesn't want his friend to be misunderstood. ]
It confused me pretty badly at first, but that's just how it works in his world I think. Some places have people with superpowers, some places have spirits that are the living form of certain concepts or emotions. I think he mentioned one named Justice, there's a whole load of them.
That's why it's so important for him to see what people are feeling. He needs to know what people need. Like... to be himself. It's who he is.
[ All right. He's the spirit of Compassion, and he's either... fused with, or controlling, or wearing a human's body and memories? Sure, okay, that's not incredibly creepy or anything. But it clearly wasn't done out of malice, because if he's understanding Ben correctly, Cole isn't capable of malice.
And that's the weirdest part. It's hard to imagine any being whose self-concept is so singularly tied up in one kind of emotional experience. "I help people. It's what I exist for." It's not even a conscious goal for him - it's instinct, as natural as breathing. "All spirits try to be and inspire what they are." ]
Interesting... I've never encountered anything like this. So seeking out and alleviating pain - that's not just his primary motivator, but his sole motivator. Is that fair to say? And if he can't intuit what someone needs, he doesn't know what to do with himself.
Honestly? If Cole were here he might say it's his sole motivator, but I think it's his primary one. He has weird ideas about being allowed to want other stuff because he's a spirit. He thinks that makes him less or something. Cole acts like he has to always do everything nice for everyone else, but if you do one nice thing for him, he's so surprised.
It's something like that? I think it's just how how he's used to perceiving people. So not getting that input would be like... trying to have a complicated emotional conversation with a robot with no facial expressions or tone of voice or whatever, probably. Kinda some uncanny valley shit.
[ Sooooo the takeaway here is "Cole is weird," I guess. But Ben thinks he's more complex than he gives himself credit for, so that's something to keep in mind.
But yeah, the uncanny valley metaphor makes a lot more sense to the guy who builds androids for fun. Cole perceives him as something that mimics a human while lacking that sort of essential human-ness. ]
Makes sense. I think I understand a bit better now, at least. Thanks again for your help.
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no subject
Ben's explanation tracks with his prior experience, anyway. Qubit's known enough psychics to know they tend to see the world ... rather differently. And is it any wonder? The whole point is that they're extra-sensitive, particularly if they can't turn it off. ]
That's about what I figured. The first words out of his mouth were "Are you a person," as I recall.
[ But what should Ben explain to him, exactly? That's a bit tricky. ]
What I explained to you, I suppose. You might describe it as a shield, if the analogy helps. It's purely defensive, it can't cause him any harm. And... ultimately, I want him to understand we're on the same side. He's got nothing to fear from me.
no subject
I'm sure he didn't mean to hurt your feelings. As far as I can tell they've got a lot of options in his world in the person-plus category. Like... spirits and demons and people possessed by spirits and people possessed by demons and probably a ton of other things, too.
[ He considers a few moments, but he can't see any potential harm in passing along Qubit's side of things. ]
Okay, I can do that. But I can't guarantee it's going to make a huge difference. Even if I tell him you say you're on his side and don't mean him any harm, being around you might still scare him. Fear's not the sort of thing you can just switch on and off after all.
no subject
[ Which is true, but not the whole truth. Part of him can't help thinking about this in tactical terms. A telepath who instinctively and visibly fears you, even if it's nothing to do with your actual thoughts, is very bad optics. Even bringing Ben into the mix serves a dual purpose. It's true, Cole might continue to fear him, even knowing what his deal is - but Ben will be able to articulate it better if someone asks why.
He is also going to quietly leave out the fact that his shielding is the kind of thing he can switch on and off. There are some points on which he is not willing to compromise, and that's a big one. ]
What sort of place is he from, out of curiosity? I thought his attire looked a bit [ pause ] rustic, but that doesn't mean much.
no subject
He is. I mean, he literally is compassion, embodied. Hard to get more decent than that. If it's any help I'm pretty sure I distressed him the first time we met. Different reasons, but still.
[ He honestly doesn't know if Qubit and Cole could ever come to understand one another, the way he and Cole had. The shielding might make that a no go. But it doesn't hurt to give the guy some hope and reassure him it wasn't unheard of. ]
It's a place called Thedas. They've got spirits and demons, like I said, but also elves and dwarves and I'm pretty sure dragons? It seems basically medieval. Horses and swords, you know. Kings and knights and poverty and oppression. The kind of world with, like, dungeons.
[ Ben had seen the inside of one of those dungeons, yesterday. It isn't an experience he's likely to ever forget. ]
no subject
I'm not sure I follow. He's... the embodiment of an abstract concept?
no subject
[ Ben isn't sure he's explaining perfectly - understanding Cole and who and what he is now doesn't mean he's the best at summarizing it for others. But he is doing his best. Because he doesn't want his friend to be misunderstood. ]
It confused me pretty badly at first, but that's just how it works in his world I think. Some places have people with superpowers, some places have spirits that are the living form of certain concepts or emotions. I think he mentioned one named Justice, there's a whole load of them.
That's why it's so important for him to see what people are feeling. He needs to know what people need. Like... to be himself. It's who he is.
no subject
And that's the weirdest part. It's hard to imagine any being whose self-concept is so singularly tied up in one kind of emotional experience. "I help people. It's what I exist for." It's not even a conscious goal for him - it's instinct, as natural as breathing. "All spirits try to be and inspire what they are." ]
Interesting... I've never encountered anything like this. So seeking out and alleviating pain - that's not just his primary motivator, but his sole motivator. Is that fair to say? And if he can't intuit what someone needs, he doesn't know what to do with himself.
no subject
It's something like that? I think it's just how how he's used to perceiving people. So not getting that input would be like... trying to have a complicated emotional conversation with a robot with no facial expressions or tone of voice or whatever, probably. Kinda some uncanny valley shit.
no subject
But yeah, the uncanny valley metaphor makes a lot more sense to the guy who builds androids for fun. Cole perceives him as something that mimics a human while lacking that sort of essential human-ness. ]
Makes sense. I think I understand a bit better now, at least. Thanks again for your help.