An authorial note on a Book You Have Not Yet Read, But I Decided That The Authorial Note Might Be Pleasant:
This World is our World, or a version thereof. Perhaps it’s a version of this World where Magic is, if not necessarily more Real*, at least significantly less Greta Garbo-ish in its relationship with us.
You might say that the various cultures of Our Earth, versus This Place Which Would Call Itself Earth If Earth Were Not What The Dwarves Would Prefer To Call Everything, have not evolved in this World, and therefore, they could not have invented the Gods.
You are welcome to say that.
You are, one hopes, lightning-proof.
It is a pleasant modern belief that Man created the Gods in his image. It’s probably true. Have you ever had a real, true worshipper? It’s quite powerful.
However, I most thoroughly believe that P’tah and several other Gods of Creation, Forging and Making created this version of Dark Lord Earth. That’s why they’re here.
Why is there Latin? Look, there are Gods and there are Gods, but Thoth was tired of communicating in hieroglyphics and finds English depressingly large. (What is anyone supposed to do with two million words but misrepresent them?)
Why do the Dwarves have the Caementicium, their collection of long-collected and much, much longer-argued skits, stunts, arguments, discussions, and serious obsessive-compulsive thoughts on their very simple instructions from that particular Creator God?
Well, if you must create
(and you must create)
…then you have nothing more important than figuring out the best way to optimize the possibility of what you can create before you die, how good it will be, how long it will last, how good it should be, and what might be meritorious in its creation.
You could not do this, if you choose. But I don’t know why you wouldn’t, and neither would most Dwarves.
* * *
And a note about Mermaids:
What made their kisses addictive but the taste of brine?
* Thank you always, Uncle Isaac.
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