mental link: day 34

[erbier]

[ It is actually quite late when Ilde's soft voice moves through the hosts, her scent of smoke and earth. She is at a club somewhere deep in the city, dazzled by noise and light, something you are free to establish if you look for it. ]

( It has been suggested to me by a hacker named Y that I throw a concert to lure our bombers out again. )

[ This part is forthright, a statement of fact with no value attachment to it. ]

( I believe she is questioning who I really am. If I refuse this idea, I may encourage that. )

[ This may not be strictly true, but it is how Ilde has perceived their conversation. ]

( She seems to know something, but is it worth losing my guise? If not, how am I to refuse this suggestion and maintain it. I do not know if she is a part of the group who contacted us before. She may already know I am false and this is all a game. )


OOC: link & all threadjacking here very much encouraged!

Comments

[snaphiss]

( You can't know that for sure. No one can. )

[adamance]

( I see you have a knack for only seeing what you hope to see in my statements. There was another point there. Do I need to repeat myself? )

[snaphiss]

( Please do. Your commentary is so enlightening. )

[Mraow.]

[adamance]

( I'm not here to be petty. I can suggest a few other individuals who are interested in endless squabbling for little gain. Petre's name comes to mind first. )

[snaphiss]

( You clearly have a vested interest in repeatedly moralizing on tactical suggestions, yet I am the one interested in 'endless squabbling'? )

[adamance]

( Is it moralizing to suggest that we don't draw more attention to ourselves by killing citizens? If killing them would help us complete our mission, then so be it. I have no attachment to the people of this world. But it won't, and it will prevent the singularity that we came here to allow and preserve.

If we cause another death among our numbers, we will be weakened by it. Risking that is even less desirable, as we are all forced to deal with the aftermath of it.

But there is more than us, the bombers, and the people who might be at that concert. There will be many who aren't, but they will watch. They have been watching. We haven't been subtle. We have poor covers. We've placed the wrong Hosts on the wrong missions. We lack the information we require. And to gain it, we will have to take risks, but the risk you mention may shut down our operation and return us to the Station for another round of chastisement.

So do tell me again how I am moralizing at you. )

[snaphiss]

( How are you moralizing? )

( At length. )

[adamance]

( So, do you wish to cost us this mission? What do you hope to gain from that? I'm certain you can be returned to the Station to wait for us. )

[snaphiss]

( I am making a suggestion, Lexa of Tirku. I am not leading troops into battle. My finger does not hover over any buttons. Your inflamed perception of my role in this mission is flattering, but false. )

[adamance]

( You are but one warrior in this battle that is a smaller part of a very, very inefficient war.

It's clear that we don't see eye to eye on that, but you are very new here. )

[Which is a statement that is both condescending and a sign that Lexa won't fault her for just not knowing things.]

[snaphiss]

( I'm so glad we can agree on your grasp of the obvious. )

[adamance]

( A remark without refuting anything I had to say. I'd advise you to look into things before you suggest precarious plans. )

[snaphiss]

( I have no interest in refuting anything you've said. I don't know what the traditions are where you're from, but on my planet, we don't waste effort on lost causes. )

[adamance]

( I will ignore the obvious implication there, and go for the other one: if you believe living here with the Nest is a lost cause, why did you take the hand that saved you? )

[snaphiss]

( Because that isn't a lost cause. Your grasp of the obvious has slipped. )

( You're the lost cause. Reasoning with you is useless. )

[adamance]

( I am able to see insults. I just chose to ignore it. )

[Gosh, Mara, she even said that's what she did!]

[snaphiss]

( You chose to be willfully ignorant. )

[adamance]

( Why do you think that? )

[snaphiss]

( Because I thought you were choosing to be willfully ignorant of what I said earlier, but now I see you're just naturally ignorant. )

[adamance]

( Trust me, you've done nothing by repeating your insult beyond highlighting your pettiness. )

[snaphiss]

[Not gonna refute that either, Mara knows she's petty and considers it a good thing. She protects herself against slights!! So she lets Lexa have the last word.]

[adamance]

[And thus Lexa got an award for lasting the longest in the asshole know-it-all bossy woman contest on this day.]

[batmotif]

[lexa r u making new friends

don't think bruce isn't creepin on this conversation either]

[adamance]

[Just finding out who the new easily riled up and unpredictable hosts are. No biggie.]