Legend

Myriad Reality

<Snipped quote by Legend>

Sorry, sorry. I just misunderstood, then.

@Intrepid

I'm also still not getting past the idea that your ability to process goes down. It's like something you'd find in a dystopian horror.

Myriad Reality

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Pride in not sleeping enough? Oh, I didn’t know that’s what you were getting at. I think that’s just a thing because it makes some people feel tougher or more productive than people who sleep more than they do.

@Intrepid

I was looking at it from a sleep deprivation angle the whole time.

Myriad Reality

<Snipped quote by Legend>

It feels better to do it because it feels horrible to not.

@Intrepid

We're still talking about pride in not sleeping enough, right?

Myriad Reality

<Snipped quote by Legend>

*Laughs*
No, no! It’s more like accomplishing an important task. And for people, it’s especially rewarding when a task is completed that is for the good of the body’s health.

@Intrepid

But if it slows you down, why do people do it? Do humans also starve themselves so it feels better to eat?

Myriad Reality

<Snipped quote by Legend>

Indulging in it feels rewarding. It’s very refreshing to be tired, sleep well, and wake up feeling recharged.

@Intrepid

*Stares ahead for several seconds and then blinks*
...I'm sorry, I do not understand. Is it like drugs?

Myriad Reality

<Snipped quote by Legend>

No, not at all. Instead of pain or weakness, imagine that if you didn’t sleep in intervals that your body needs, your ability to process things slowly gets worse and worse, and in general your body eventually hits a point where it can just start doing less and less in all regards. Also you get this really really strong urge to sleep the more you go without it, to the point it’s very difficult to control when you go long enough. Sleeping involuntarily is a thing that happens.

@Intrepid

That sounds like some kind of torture. Why do humans brag about it?

Myriad Reality

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Then it might be the closest I can get you to understanding.

@Intrepid

I imagine being sleepy is similar?

Myriad Reality

<Snipped quote by Legend>

Well, that’s exactly it. You’ve felt pain and discomfort before, yeah?

@Intrepid

Definitely. I don't know if they're exactly the same as what you perceive, but I have some kind of equivalence.

Myriad Reality

<Snipped quote by Legend>

Hmm. Well, that’s the best way I can describe it. Imagine a feeling of relative strength or weakness being related to those values. The more you eat, the higher the numbers, and if it gets too high or too low, it causes you to feel pain or discomfort until it’s corrected. The more extremely it deviates from that happy medium, the worse you feel.

@Intrepid

I do understand what it is and how it works, but the perception of that feeling is what's never been all that clear to me.

Myriad Reality

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...
*Laughs*
Oh, I thought it was going to be way weirder than that. Well, um, it’s just generally this uncomfortable feeling in your torso area-
*Circles my stomach with my finger*
Or at least, it starts that way. It can eventually start to hurt if it goes on long enough, and it can make you feel weak. If you’ve ever directly felt what it’s like to be low on power or energy, then I’m sure it’s largely the same thing.

@Intrepid

We don't directly perceive those kinds of things; they're values to us. So it's like pain?