Hello, Tokei Gengo-ui. In case my Jukuren don't go so well, here is my brief synopsis on one of the languages of Sol, written in English, one of the four ancient languages.
// BRIEF HISTORY OF HATSUON IN SOL //
At the age of eight, gakusei move from Hoku Tosei (or Hoiku) to Ko Tosei, beginning the first of their rigorous training periods that starts with two years of Gengo - The study of language, and mathematics as a language. We spend about a year strictly studying Nihanji, the national language of Sol, before we step into what we refer to as our "foreign studies."
Hatsuon, as the first foreign language introduced, is so fascinating to me. It is a lovely fun language to speak, by the way, but has no written script, so we had to learn everything by ear without the help of visual aids. Isn't it quite ironic that the language developed by the underdwellers to be indecipherable by the citydwellers, is now being taught as a primary language in Sol's tosei? Yeah, the underdwellers did not like that at all. So what was once a secret code between a small group of people, has become an entirely independent language. Of course, it is not proper or acceptable to speak Hatsuon in any setting in Sol, and is only for educational purposes. It was a rather fun time learning Hatsuon during Gengo, however, when all of the students were instructed to speak to each other in what were essentially "swear words."
// SKRII-XK //
Hatsuon has about four distinct dialects that we know of today. My absolute favorite is Skrii-xk, which is a language almost entirely made from the plosive sounds in consonants. P-T-K, ppuhttekkah, is an actual word (which means "death" by the way). This dialect is the one we know very little about - maybe only a few words or simple phrases - and might actually be the formation of an entirely new language in the Underground. That being said, it's not to be taken lightly. Supposedly, this dialect (or rather, language) is only spoken in the deepest tunnels of the Underground, and if you hear it in person, can expect to die within the next four seconds.
How have I heard it then? Well, there are sound recordings online. I heard a rather vile recording (the video was mostly corrupted) of an exchange between two underdwellers. You can tell they were in a tunnel from the way their voices reverberated off the walls. I'll link the video here, but if the link doesn't work (as the l.net is often scrubbed by corpses), here is a transcription:
> >>UNIT1 - Jiyyung typphool, hatsma bieyn. (Hatsuon Standard)
>
> >>UNIT2 - Pyhhhh-taooohhhk,mehhadd. (Hatsuon Skrii-xk)
>
> >>UNIT1 - (Pleading) Haidah, haidah, yiip hatsumadahl! (Hatsuon Standard)
>
> ... UNIT2 swiftly deletes the presence of UNIT1 ...
A few things happened here. Obviously, by the tone of voice, Unit 1 was very afraid, if not terrified of Unit 2. Unit 2, by the way, is a bit of a celebrity. I've heard his voice recording three separate times on the l.net, and yes, none of those recordings have ended well.
So what was Unit 1 pleading about? Well, we know that jiyyeaol is a title used to refer to someone of great power, but jiyyung is actually a derivative of the word, meaning "you have great power because I don't." So use of that word actually has more to do with the user than the subject. Typphool we all know means "tide of the moon." Hatsma and haidah are derivatives of the word hatsumadahl, which essentially means "please," or "forgive me." Hatsma in this case means to pity, and bieyn is an improper form of bieymeklah, which means "autonomy." In this sense of the word, it refers to something that is done because that's just the way it is.
Putting this all together, we can see that Unit 1 believes he is speaking to a god. And he says to the god, "You must pity me for my wrongdoings because I know no better." Or more simply, "You must pity me because it is so." The tone of his voice is rather sick or stricken with fear. You could almost feel his sweat through the trembling of his voice. In the poetic nature of the language (which is why I so love Hatsuon), the figurative translation is: "God by default to my weakness, who controls the tides by commanding the moon; I and you know in synchrony that you must pity me because it is only fair."
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Mr. Celebrity, Unit 2, does not respond directly, nor does he respond in the same dialect, which means he is used to talking at people instead of with them, almost as if he doesn't live in the same reality as those around him (That's just a speculative character analysis from me, don't read too far into it).
As I've said, we know very little of Skrii-xk, but I'm something of a linguistics genius, so allow me to dissect. First I have to pause and say, I know this man is most probably a killer, based on what I've heard from the sound recordings, but his voice is so serenely beautiful. It's harsh and mellow. Short, as if speaking takes up too much energy. Acidic, like he only bothers to speak once or twice a year, in short bursts. Those sinisterly intriguing qualities, mixed with the absolute poetry of Skrii-xk -- I could honestly listen to it all day. Granted, there are only three recordings of his voice, which contain an accumulative two full phrases, but less is more.
Right, so Unit 2 says ppyhh-ttaohkk, which, at first I thought meant "pray, talk" separately. But after listening through, I think it actually means "prey-talk." I've come to this conclusion by use of the Hatsuon word for talk, which is teuknah. The word for pray is deejjad, so that wasn't a match, but I always like to cross-check the ancient languages when dissecting Hatsuon dialects. There weren't any matches, except for the English words pray/prey -- again, not very helpful. But when I saw the image of a snake eating a rabbit painted onto one of the Underground walls (on the l.net, of course), it made me think of the reverse-subject principle used in Hatsuon. Remember when I said jiyyung is a word that affects the subject specifically because of the user? This principle is actually used all across Hatsuon, and a lot of words were formed from reverse meanings.
"Python," a type of snake, has no translation in Hatsuon or Nihanji, like most extinct species, but when the need to be even more obscure arose, the underdwellers started incorporating words from dead languages that could not be translated. Dead words in combination with the reverse-subject principle, led me to believe that "ppyhh," from the English word "python," means "prey" in Skrii-xk. Obviously, a python is not prey, but, "You are prey because I am a python," is something I would expect to hear in Skrii-xk.
Next, he uses the word mehadd, which, by the hostility in his voice, I can only guess has a negative meaning. It's harder to determine slang, especially in Skrii-xk, because we could be looking at an entirely new word. Language, even language designed to be discreet, has a habit of recycling words. The closest translations I could find are the Hatsuon word, mijago and the Skrii-xk word hheukmat(h), which mean meat and gnarly feast, respectively. Unit 2 could be saying that he intends to eat Unit 1 like prey, but if I had to guess, I believe he's saying something racially offensive or equally as disturbing. He could possibly be saying something like "sinkhead," from the Hatsuon word mulk for "mud," in combination with the ancient Japanese word ヘッド (heddo) for head- or -head, in this case, meaning "of the mud." I believe he is saying something more along these lines.
Translated completely, Unit 2 says: "Prey-talk, sinkhead." Meaning something like, "All sinkheads sound the same," "You are all the same," or, "All prey sound the same when they beg." You get the idea.
Lastly, Haidah, haidah, meaning "please, please," and yiip hatsumadahl!, "please, forgive me." Unit 1 is simply pleading for his life.
New Translation:
> >>UNIT1- Please forgive my wrongdoings, oh great god of the moon.
>
> >>UNIT2- Prey-talk.
>
> >>UNIT1 - Please, please, oh, please have mercy!
Or something to that effect.
Deduction: Unit 1 and Unit 2 were involved in a deal that went bad. Unit 1 either didn't deliver on something he promised or he more simply was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
// CONCLUSION //
The Underground is a merciless place, and those that speak in Skrii-xk are far beyond the capability to be reinstated into society. If you hear someone speak in Hatsuon, you most surely took a turn down the wrong corner, and if you ever hear Skrii-xk spoken within earshot, I would be surprised if you lived to tell the tale.
Well. My pen has been dipped in the forbidden ink, as they say, so if you've had any encounters with Skrii-xk or found any more voice recordings on the l.net, comment down below!