thinking! But, as usual, common sense prevailed. You see, as most of you
have already guessed, we believe the Sanctum to be a separate dimension or
universe that all of us enter in our sleep. It answers every question
imaginable! Where did it come from? Why, the same place as everything else in
the universe, of course. How do we come here each night? Our subconscious minds
leave our bodies as we sleep and travel to this world. It all makes sense. But
before I bore you with the details you already know, the important part is that
we are no longer alone. Kwin, please join me.”
Kwin stood up, and immediately all eyes in the
city were upon her with renewed interest. The applause was much louder this
time, and she bowed graciously before striding confidently to the front of the
stage and shaking Lackthorpe’s hand. To most, her expression was one of
courteous, formal interest, but Kai knew better. He recognized her smile as the
one she wore when she had her enemy right where she wanted them. As she took
her place, Lackthorpe sat down to watch, watching her expectantly.
“Thank you for your kind words,” Kwin said
loudly, her voice echoing across the square. “I am absolutely delighted to have
the opportunity to speak with you in front of so many people. To everyone
gathered here today, you have my gratitude for coming to watch what will no
doubt be an exciting event.” She paused for a moment as the crowd applauded
again. The men at the table looked between each other, sharing snide smirks of
self-appreciation.
As the square quieted again, Kwin continued.
“As you have heard, I am here to speak with
the institution regarding their opinions on the formation of the Sanctum, the
psychological effects it has on our minds and other such things. I’ll spare you
the details, because I’m sure most of you care very little for Golden Capital’s
politics or the specifics of our theories. Let’s face it: they can both be
quite boring.” The crowd laughed politely, and Kwin took this moment to smile
at Lackthorpe. “But the institution’s theories are interesting! They certainly
seem to believe they have all the world’s questions answered. That’s a
comforting thought, is it not?”
For the first time the men at the table
glanced at each other uncomfortably. Lackthorpe continued to smile, but it was
starting to appear forced.
“But I won’t stray too far off topic. You are
all here because the institution is prepared to make its findings official, and
I have the privilege of joining them as they do.” Applause sounded again, and
the men relaxed in their chairs. Lackthorpe stood up to take his place at the
center of the stage when Kwin continued. “It is because I hold the
institution’s findings in such high esteem that I have decided to demonstrate
to you all just how solid their research is – today, I am personally going to
question this panel on their work.”
Lackthorpe froze like a deer in headlights,
and the rest of the panel whispered amongst themselves nervously. He quickly
cleared his throat and straightened up.
“Ah, that won’t actually be necessary. Our
research is sound, and these people don’t have so much time, we don’t want to
bore them with–”
“Oh, don’t be ridiculous, professor,” Kwin
said with a beaming smile. “What you have accomplished should be shared with
everyone. In addition, everyone should be able to see that your work stands up
to heavy scrutiny. The Sanctum is full of intelligent people who would benefit
from this. Am I right?”
A deafening “Yes” echoed throughout the
square.
“Brilliant,” Kai said, very impressed. “She
isn’t coming out and saying they’re wrong, she’s letting the people figure that
out on their own just by making the panel talk.”
“It’s the beautiful, subtle art of
self-incrimination,” Alastor agreed proudly. “Kwin is excellent at getting
people to talk themselves into trouble, and she likes to toy with them first.
Right
have already guessed, we believe the Sanctum to be a separate dimension or
universe that all of us enter in our sleep. It answers every question
imaginable! Where did it come from? Why, the same place as everything else in
the universe, of course. How do we come here each night? Our subconscious minds
leave our bodies as we sleep and travel to this world. It all makes sense. But
before I bore you with the details you already know, the important part is that
we are no longer alone. Kwin, please join me.”
Kwin stood up, and immediately all eyes in the
city were upon her with renewed interest. The applause was much louder this
time, and she bowed graciously before striding confidently to the front of the
stage and shaking Lackthorpe’s hand. To most, her expression was one of
courteous, formal interest, but Kai knew better. He recognized her smile as the
one she wore when she had her enemy right where she wanted them. As she took
her place, Lackthorpe sat down to watch, watching her expectantly.
“Thank you for your kind words,” Kwin said
loudly, her voice echoing across the square. “I am absolutely delighted to have
the opportunity to speak with you in front of so many people. To everyone
gathered here today, you have my gratitude for coming to watch what will no
doubt be an exciting event.” She paused for a moment as the crowd applauded
again. The men at the table looked between each other, sharing snide smirks of
self-appreciation.
As the square quieted again, Kwin continued.
“As you have heard, I am here to speak with
the institution regarding their opinions on the formation of the Sanctum, the
psychological effects it has on our minds and other such things. I’ll spare you
the details, because I’m sure most of you care very little for Golden Capital’s
politics or the specifics of our theories. Let’s face it: they can both be
quite boring.” The crowd laughed politely, and Kwin took this moment to smile
at Lackthorpe. “But the institution’s theories are interesting! They certainly
seem to believe they have all the world’s questions answered. That’s a
comforting thought, is it not?”
For the first time the men at the table
glanced at each other uncomfortably. Lackthorpe continued to smile, but it was
starting to appear forced.
“But I won’t stray too far off topic. You are
all here because the institution is prepared to make its findings official, and
I have the privilege of joining them as they do.” Applause sounded again, and
the men relaxed in their chairs. Lackthorpe stood up to take his place at the
center of the stage when Kwin continued. “It is because I hold the
institution’s findings in such high esteem that I have decided to demonstrate
to you all just how solid their research is – today, I am personally going to
question this panel on their work.”
Lackthorpe froze like a deer in headlights,
and the rest of the panel whispered amongst themselves nervously. He quickly
cleared his throat and straightened up.
“Ah, that won’t actually be necessary. Our
research is sound, and these people don’t have so much time, we don’t want to
bore them with–”
“Oh, don’t be ridiculous, professor,” Kwin
said with a beaming smile. “What you have accomplished should be shared with
everyone. In addition, everyone should be able to see that your work stands up
to heavy scrutiny. The Sanctum is full of intelligent people who would benefit
from this. Am I right?”
A deafening “Yes” echoed throughout the
square.
“Brilliant,” Kai said, very impressed. “She
isn’t coming out and saying they’re wrong, she’s letting the people figure that
out on their own just by making the panel talk.”
“It’s the beautiful, subtle art of
self-incrimination,” Alastor agreed proudly. “Kwin is excellent at getting
people to talk themselves into trouble, and she likes to toy with them first.
Right
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