Tol-in-Gaurhoth XLIX - At the Source of Darkness

[Nogrod]

Finally Nogrod the pointless philosopher walked forwards and addressed the others.

"Fear not for philosophy will offer consolation to us all. I mean that one should not be afraid of something that isn't plain real and concrete, right? Now can you prove these miss-spelling monsters do exist? No you can't. Maybe the deaths of our rangers are just results of our imagination and they're not actually dead, or maybe the Valar have taken them to their lands and are just trying our faith? Or maybe these are just pools of a random red liquid that pours from the veins of the aghastly halls in memory of the foul deeds and murder commited here millenia ago? Or maybe there is no real world but only your mind that is tricked by far greater powers – or just by this hollow place which wishes to lead us astray? …

Uhh… just a minute… oh yes, our fear is more like pointing to the possibility of those monsters being real and within the realm of possibilities anything... well at least almost anything is somewhat... erm... possible? As creatures able to think we are also able to leave the "here-and-now" and to both remember the past and to anticipate the future… So a major form of fear may arise from the anticipation of a possibility becoming actual. Thence the object of our fear might not be the existence of those beasts and their threat on us here which could be refuted with showing the impossibility of proving the necessary nature of their being, but the possibility of them becoming actual in the future or at least the existence of that threat in our minds. So the absence of their presence doesn’t yet solve the problem then… Now, this is a dilemma. Just a minute…

But a philosopher once said that death in itself is not frightening for it is only our fear of death that frightens us. The things in world happen and are neither frightful or delighting as such - for they are necessary – it's only the emotions and beliefs we attach to things existing or possibly happening that give them their value and our anticipation that makes us fear or hunger for them. So the fear nor it's object are not in the world but inside you all yourselves. It's up to you to decide whether you should be afraid of your own thoughts or not.... or...

Oh my… I seem to have ended up into the side of repressive ideologies that blame the individuals and leave the oppressive system untouched. The reality of evil and suffering should not be forgotten indeed! It is emancipation and enlightenment that we need and not apologies for the necessity and unavoidability of our unjust situation. Let's fight this out and free ourselves as subjects of our own lives and declare our rights against the evil oppressors and the violent system!

But then again: how to fight against violence and oppression that are not actual or present but are merely enclosed in the fear and evil existing primarily within us ourselves as structures of our own thought laid there by the oppressive class and it's cultural hegemony? The fight needs an object as well, the thing we're fighting against – and an analysis as to where this evil arises from and what are its mechanics so that we could outdo its effects? So we should should fight against ourselves first then, beat our inner demons? Gah, I'm afraid I lost my point…if there ever was any, I mean...

Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery in any case!

Sorry. I got a bit carried away as well. I'll think a bit more if you allow me..."

[Nogrod]

1. There is evil among us.

1.1. There are two wolves.

1.1.2. There are only two wolves against 16 people.

1.1.2.1 It seems they are not knowledgeable of their helpers but only of each other.

1.2. There are four cobblers.

1.2.1. The cobblers - adding with the number of wolves - can create a lot of havoc in any one voting we make.

1.2.1.1. Many times those cobblerish-souls can be kind of ignored until the last Days.

1.2.1.2. This is not one of those times as it seems they know each others identity and are numerous (look also 1.2.1.).

1.2.1.2.1. Unless I read the narration too hastily as it says only that They saw each other, though the vision was too blurry and dark to reveal a thing.

1.2.1.2.2. The beginning of the sentence states it quite clearly that "saw each other" eg. they know each others identity, but the rest of the sentence kind of puts that in some doubt.

1.2.1.2.3. If the interpretation I made is false in the point 1.2.1.2. then the nasty scenario loses some of its potency - which would be good.

1.2.1.3 The antique-dealer is at least partly wrong. Whatever the interpretation, the cobblers are a major problem even if we agreed that the wolves are our main enemies.

1.2.2. The cobblers' possibilities of creating havoc is lessened a little by the fact that they do not know the identities of the wolves and that is good.

1.3. We have six enemies here.

1.3.1. That makes it one third of our total.

1.3.1.1. The sum total of us will be decreasing Day by Day.

1.3.1.2. It will decrease Night by Night to be exact.

1.3.2. It is a new situation indeed.

1.3.2.1. New situations are challenges that might prove either way.

1.3.2.2. Let's hope this will turn out the good way.

1.4. We may be in trouble.

1.4.1. The greatest peril being that the cobblers may twist an important vote with co-operation in a situation they feel safe enough on later Days.

1.4.1.1. If the speculation in 1.2.1.2.1.-3. is right then this danger lessens.

1.4.2. The chances of the cobblers can be denied from them if we are careful and witty enough... and lucky... and the rules favour us.

1.4.2.1. I'd look for nice bandwagons even more closely this time.

1.4.2.2. Especially in the first Days.

1.4.2.2.1. Which throws even more responsibility to the innocents around here for choosing the easy lynch will be exactly the way the cobblers would like to save themselves on the first Days before their time actually comes to perform their ugly duties.

1.4.2.2.2. Differentiating between a lazy / self-preserving innocent and a cobbler will be a task in this situation.

1.4.3. There's no greater light than those of hope and determination.


2. There is much good around.

2.1. There are 12 totally innocent souls against the malice.

2.1.1. Of those twelve two have special powers to help us.

2.1.1.1. Sadly they don't know of each other.

2.1.2. The four lesser evils will be counted as innocents in any tallies if it gets to that point.

2.1.2.1. The mathematical ratio of evil vs. the good is 2 to 16.

2.1.2.1.1. The effect of those four innocent but cobbler persons may twist the voting though (look especially 1.2.1.2.).

2.2. We innocents need not lie or fabricate things.

2.2.1. Forced cases should bring forwards alarm-bells as they are ones the wolves and cobblers need to do.

2.2.2. But how to differentiate those from tests and trials we innocents need to do if the villains want to stay quiet and uncontroversial?

2.2.2.1. A load of people just nodding to each other is the best scenario for the baddies to hide within.

2.2.2.2. And we have six of them trying to hide!

2.2.2.3. Or to be agreeable.

2.3. Let's stay true and sharp.


End of part I.


EDIT: X'd with everything after tp's second post...