Level 3

[whats_a_paladin]

[1] I've been wondering about something.

The Tome of Wisdom is my most important possession. It describes the eight Virtues of the way of Paragon. Understanding those Virtues and mastering them leads to enlightenment. Anyone can follow the way, but there is a catch - the Tome is written in an unknown language. Only those who are unhappy with their current state of being, those who seek improvement and guidance, can understand what the words mean.

Anyone interested in trying to read the Tome of Wisdom? You could think of it as a challenge, or maybe a way to find something new about yourself.

[2] [Raynor is busy working on the damages to the Paragon, and while he's doing so, he's listening to another power metal song. But this time, he's doing so on headphones. As a side effect, he's humming it to himself.

If you can call that humming. Not only is it pretty loud, but it's absolutely wretched. His sense of rhythm is awful so it sounds nothing like the original song, and every other note is either missing or a false one. His attempts at lyrics sound like unholy screeching more than his normal voice, and individual words are almost impossible to decipher.

Stop this travesty?]

Comments

[whats_a_paladin]

Well, if we all already mastered all the virtues, then the Tome would be unnecessary, no?

[Raynor sits down next to the bed and opens the book at the prologue, which describes roughly the ideas behind the whole system in general. Each virtue is a combination of some of the primary principles: truth, love, and courage. Valor is pure courage, Honesty is pure truth, compassion is pure love. Honor is courage and truth together, justice is love and truth, and sacrifice is courage and love. Spirituality is all three together, while humility is the lack of either, but without any of the accompanying vices. Rather than a set of strict rules, each virtue is a guideline - something you have to understand on your own and then follow in spirit, not in letter.

That's the gist of what's written there. But can Sora read it?]

[sunshine_maiden]

[Sora spends a moment reviewing the information in front of her; to her tired eyes, it feels almost like the letters are shifting into place, but they're there all the same.]

...that tells me a lot already, actually. I'm better at some of these than others, but that's probably because my underlying stuff needs work. I denied myself for so long that my personality suffered for it.

[whats_a_paladin]

Glad to see just the prologue gives you some food for thought. We haven't even started reading about the specific virtues yet!

You denied yourself, in what way? If you don't mind me asking.

[sunshine_maiden]

Well... they way they're laid out here, it's almost like they're combinations of things, in balance. And I know that I don't have emotional balance at all. Even the things I think I'm okay at, I still flub half the time. So... maybe there's something in here to get me on the right path. I'm starting to finally get a handle on who I am... now I just need to shape who I am into who I want to be.

[She lets out a light laugh, though she stops with a wince shortly after.] I lived for a decade as a boy, to protect my older brother from something he wasn't healthy enough for. I changed myself so much... it stopped feeling "wrong". When I got my mecha, it wouldn't respond to me, because I'd gotten to the point where I'd started to think of myself too differently, and Desu units don't work for men. It's only recently that I've felt... my own gender again. [A wry smile.] It's odd, but it's nice.

[whats_a_paladin]

That... sounds like a very complex issue, and one that I have very little experience with. But I can tell that as long as you're not allowed to express yourself the way you see yourself, you won't be truly happy. And to achieve wisdom, you need to understand who you really are as well. You can't improve yourself if you don't really know yourself.

...Sorry, I tend to get overly philosophical at times. Want to read about one of the Virtues?

[sunshine_maiden]

No, it's fine... I had several of the same thoughts. So I've been trying to change, since I got here... it's been slow, but I think I've made a little progress. [She grins.] It helps that POTPOURRI completely ignores me otherwise.

Sure. Um... [Sora thinks for a moment.] Compassion. I want to see what it says about that. Maybe it and I have different ideas.

[whats_a_paladin]

A little progress is good already. Changing oneself for the better is never easy. It's quick and takes a single epiphany only in the movies; in real life, it takes a lot of time.

[Raynor opens the chapter about compassion.

Compassion, the virtue of pure love, is about treating others with kindness and helping them in their troubles. Truly compassionate individuals don't limit themselves to just helping people they know, but try to aid everyone who needs their aid. Everyone can reach out to a friend in need, but it takes a special kind of person to do so towards a stranger, or even someone they dislike.
Kindness is not weakness. Compassionate people need to be ready to fight, in order to stop suffering from being inflicted upon others. An important aspect of compassion, however, is respect for life, all life. A compassionate warrior will not take life lightly or thoughtlessly.

Those who master the virtue of compassion are granted the ability to inspire others, bringing them strength and easing their burden.]

[sunshine_maiden]

Don't I know it... I've been struggling with who I am for nearly two years now. I owe Professor Himesaki - Nanohana's grandmother, who runs Fairy Park, which produces our units - a great deal for the first half of that. I owe Hana herself, and Kamille, for the rest. Those are debts I will spend my life repaying.

[As she read, Sora thought back to some of her past experiences. That first day on the ship, when she let Hana vent on her almost before she met her. The countless civilians she'd put herself on the line to protect (and failed to, a few times). The faces of all the people she'd reached out to on the ship, whether she knew them well or not. She knew that, on some level, she could open her heart wider... but it would hurt. She'd had a taste of taking on the world's problems, when her team was falling apart, and while it was a pain she was willing to bear... she wasn't quite sure she was ready. But then, Sora's not the kind of girl that backs down from a challenge, and she knows it.

All her attention is on reading, but Sora can't stop a warm smile blooming. "Inspiration" certainly described her abilities, lately; she could think of a few people that would have given up some time ago, if not for (in part, at least) her reassurance and support.]

...I guess I didn't need to start with this one after all. There are some things I can work on, still, but this is one of the few things I'm confident in. Even if I do it wrong sometimes, or I don't have the words... I share my heart, with everyone.

[whats_a_paladin]

Good to hear that. Compassion is something that tends to come really easy to some people, because it's in their nature, and really hard to others, because it isn't. And some think they're in one category, while in reality they're in the other. But I doubt that's the case for you.