"There's horses, yeah," she responds with a shrug. "You see the cops riding 'em sometimes. That's how you know they're all right cops, 'cause horses won't stand being near one of the Night Police."
Not relevant information for Matthias; he's not a new recruit she's teaching the ways of the world. So: "It's not like a magician's got to be sitting in there constantly making it go. They have magicians - lower-level magicians, obviously, not the sort who'll get to be Prime Minister and all that - They have them working in factories, sitting in a nice cushy office, and soon as commoners have finished losing fingers or hands to the brutal machines that build the cars, the magicians wave their hands to make them go. And everyone says, Oh, yes, so-and-so built this car. And that name isn't a commoner's."
Second to the cause of the mages is the cause of poor people, who are constantly being trodden on and ignored. And Matthias would know, as he is those people. "So there's levels to it? I thought it was, you know. All mages being shit. Magicians," he corrects, "sorry. But it's a stupid word. Not that I s'ppose you care about it sounding stupid. And the Night Police, that's like--magicians who are guards, then?"
She shakes her head. "They're werewolves," she answers. "Specially bred and trained to be obedient to the magicians. They're supposed to bring in political dissidents, but - well - a lot of the time, they just - you know. Eat whoever it is they're after, instead." She stares glumly at her knees. "Not that that's a bad thing, really. It's kept us safe more than once, someone getting killed 'stead of taken to the Tower."
Then she looks up. That was maybe too much of a confession, but...As she'd decided earlier: Matthias is all right. And it's not like he doesn't know a thing or two about dodging the authorities, right? He's never discussed it with her directly, but it doesn't take a genius to know that he was part of the mage rebellion.
"But yeah - I mean, it's like Tevinter, right? There are some that are on top, and some below them scrabbling for an advantage. Doesn't make them good. Just different."
He pulls a little face at the thought of people getting eaten, with enough regularity to merit Kitty's a lot of the time. Disgusting. And unfair. Only from the context he can tell that the Tower must be some grim place, likely of torture--and he knows enough to know how someone dying is sometimes safer. And better for them as well, really, in the end. Poor souls.
"That's true. Yeah. About it being like Tevinter, I mean. Just seems different, but I reckon that's 'cause I don't know much about it. I don't know much about Tevinter, really," which he cops to with a bit of a grimace. "They're sort of mental. S' like Nevarra. Death and weirdies there. And Tevinter is just weirdies with slaves."
"It's - a bit more complicated than that," Kitty says, but then shakes her head. She'd noticed earlier how twitchy Matthias got; it's clear he's got a great big chip on his shoulder about seeming stupid, and she doesn't want to make him feel that way.
"Doesn't matter - Anyway. But yeah. I mean, all places are sort of like that, right? Free Marches, too. Just there it's the non-mages in power, keeping down people like you."
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Not relevant information for Matthias; he's not a new recruit she's teaching the ways of the world. So: "It's not like a magician's got to be sitting in there constantly making it go. They have magicians - lower-level magicians, obviously, not the sort who'll get to be Prime Minister and all that - They have them working in factories, sitting in a nice cushy office, and soon as commoners have finished losing fingers or hands to the brutal machines that build the cars, the magicians wave their hands to make them go. And everyone says, Oh, yes, so-and-so built this car. And that name isn't a commoner's."
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Second to the cause of the mages is the cause of poor people, who are constantly being trodden on and ignored. And Matthias would know, as he is those people. "So there's levels to it? I thought it was, you know. All mages being shit. Magicians," he corrects, "sorry. But it's a stupid word. Not that I s'ppose you care about it sounding stupid. And the Night Police, that's like--magicians who are guards, then?"
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Then she looks up. That was maybe too much of a confession, but...As she'd decided earlier: Matthias is all right. And it's not like he doesn't know a thing or two about dodging the authorities, right? He's never discussed it with her directly, but it doesn't take a genius to know that he was part of the mage rebellion.
"But yeah - I mean, it's like Tevinter, right? There are some that are on top, and some below them scrabbling for an advantage. Doesn't make them good. Just different."
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"That's true. Yeah. About it being like Tevinter, I mean. Just seems different, but I reckon that's 'cause I don't know much about it. I don't know much about Tevinter, really," which he cops to with a bit of a grimace. "They're sort of mental. S' like Nevarra. Death and weirdies there. And Tevinter is just weirdies with slaves."
no subject
"Doesn't matter - Anyway. But yeah. I mean, all places are sort of like that, right? Free Marches, too. Just there it's the non-mages in power, keeping down people like you."