Sunshine

[Anastasia]

Sure, go for followers then. How are you going to do it?

[Iron Dragoon]

Start with Lasri. I'll just call her into the office since she's currently residing in my realm.

[Anastasia]

Lasri enters and bows deeply, kneeling without a word, merely awaiting your attention.

[Iron Dragoon]

Alyssa motions her to take a seat, "Lasri! How have you been? It's been an odd transition for you, I know."

[Anastasia]

Lasri sits, "I'm learning so much," She answers, "Magic and stonework, geography, history, the natural world, arcana. There's so many books and lessons here. It's everything I could ever imagine."

[Iron Dragoon]

Alyssa smiles, "I'm glad to hear it. Your growth and expansion makes me happy. I do have something more for you, however. Something to bring you some focus and a mission.

The library you were building was inspiring, Lasri. I want you to continue it, but on a grander scale."

[Anastasia]

This gets Lasri to focus on you, "How and where, ma'am?" she asks openly.

[Iron Dragoon]

"Both are entirely up to you. That's part of your mission. If you want to build something, you have to learn to be an architect first.

Here's the problem I want you to solve: your people, the Dwarven people, for all that their clans are their families and they track their bloodlines back generations, are solitary. Each clan stands apart, singularly. This means that when one clan falls, nearly everything they've learned, all their skills, works, and history, are lost.

I want you to establish a great Dwarven library. A center locus to record history, techniques, and serve as a central meeting place.

I imagine you can already see a few difficulties with this, no?"

[Anastasia]

In the interests of being both open and honest here, that's not necessarily universal across Primes. In case you want to hedge your response a bit or adjust it.

[Iron Dragoon]

What's the general rule of thumb for this, then?

[Anastasia]

I'd suggest being a little more open with the premise than pinning it to a particular variable.

[Iron Dragoon]

"Both are entirely up to you. That's part of your mission. If you want to build something, you have to learn to be an architect first.

Here's the problem I want you to solve: your people, the Dwarven people, for all that their clans are their families and they track their bloodlines back generations, are often times insular. Many times, clans get few visitors over the years, or they have fewer trade partners than I'd like. This means that if they were to fall, there's a chance that a large portion of their history, knowledge, skills, and great works might be lost.

I want you to establish a great Dwarven library. A center locus to record history, techniques, and serve as a central meeting place.

I imagine you can already see a few difficulties with this, no?"

[Anastasia]

"It would be the work of lifetimes," Lasri confesses, "To begin it and gather all the knowledge, and set it up to gain more. Moradin could do such a feat, but me? Alone?"

[Iron Dragoon]

Alyssa raises an eyebrow and grins, "You are the single island in this desolate ocean of mine, are you? Alone, and bereft of resources and fellows in faith, belief, and ambition? Not a single soul in the whole of my realm with a spirit for exploration and creation? No single refugee, wanderer, or settler looking for a mission to span generations tread this wasteland of mine? No source of goods and materials in the entire span of my dominion?

There is more to this than the mission. This is about teaching you to grow and become a leader. Organization, recruitment, logistics. There more to learn than knowledge from books."

[Anastasia]

A duck of her head, Lasri taking the rebuke for what it is. "So to go do on a grand scale, you mean? Will supplies be provided for it?"