mental link, day :039

[polyphonos]

[The soft, rhythmic hiss of cards shuffling. Something honeyed on the tongue. The tang of citrus in the air. Cathaway's mind is an irregular, wavering thread picking crooked stitches through the Station.]

( Ilde and us were hard at work while you all were gone. We'd like to treat you to dinner tomorrow. )

Comments

[polyphonos]

( It's a good excuse to remind ourselves how to prepare a meal. )

[And for conversation that isn't so weighed by anxiety or paranoia or what the Nest is. The Station is too big a place for this small group of beings and it may be best to occasionally consolidate them into a single place as a reminder that they aren't alone here.]

[redheadcarrier]

( I never really learned how to cook. )

[ This feels like the weirdest thing to be talking about with a voice in her head. She's not sure how comfortable she is with it. ]

[polyphonos]

( We could teach you if you cared to learn. )

[Clearly Cathaway doesn't mind the mental small talk.]

[redheadcarrier]

( Aren't we in the middle of a war? )

[polyphonos]

( Does the require us to be nothing but weapons? )

[redheadcarrier]

( Isn't that what we are? )

[ It's what she was for NERV. At least until she stopped working. There's a flavor of bitterness to that thought. ]

[polyphonos]

( No. We're beings with a need to survive. Companionship is a necessary part of self preservation. )

[What would be the point otherwise?]

[redheadcarrier]

( But we're fighting a war. )

[ She shouldn't be looking the gift horse in the mouth, but she is anyway. It's hard for her not to. ]

[polyphonos]

( One we'd lose if we forget who we are. Our collective identity is what gives the Nest it's strength - what makes it capable. Identity is defined by perspective, by experience, by adaptability. In our experience, beings are much better at all of those than machined weapons.)

[Perhaps it's true - they're weapons in an abstracted war. But if people are to be weaponized, they require the most maintenance.]

[redheadcarrier]

[ Identity. Perspective. This all sounds so much like what had been thrown at her by the Angel and by Third Impact.

She's not sure if she finds that reassuring or ominous. ]

( So what do you want us to do, then? Just live? )

[polyphonos]

( With a mind toward improving yourself of course, but it would be a very dull existence if all we did was throw ourselves against an invisible wall. )

[Simple enough. What joy would their be in winning anything - a war, some small measure of ground - if they didn't remember what joy was supposed to be like? There's something of that thought transmitted like a buzzing, humming undercurrent between them: unspoken, but obvious in every stitch of Cathaway's murmuring mind.]

[redheadcarrier]

( I'm already the best at what I do. )

[ The response is automatic. Something she doesn't really believe anymore, but something she still has to say to keep her ego intact. When is she going to stop? Probably never. ]

( So I guess I'll have to find something else to do. )

[polyphonos]

( Excellent. We suggest looking to your brood for inspiration. )

[Let her be as egotistical as she wishes. Such a trait is sometimes beneficial for long term survival.]

[redheadcarrier]

( We'll see. )

[ There's still the instinctual urge to lash out; to drive others away. It's hard to resist. ]

[erbier]

( What else do you enjoy? )

[redheadcarrier]

( I don't know. Swimming? Athletics? Math? )

[erbier]

( I know very little of math, perhaps you will teach me? )

[redheadcarrier]

( I guess I can. How much do you actually know about it? Please tell me you have the basics, at least. You can't be that stupid. )

[erbier]

[ A murmur of laughter, the arrogance falls off the mark. ]

( I can count and I can portion, but we had no schools, no culture, no sciences in my world. Anything I wish to know now, I must find for myself. )

[ Besides, it isn't really about her. It's about entertaining Asuka. ]

[redheadcarrier]

( Oh, brother. I guess we can start with basic algebra... At least you'll learn something. )

[ It's nice to feel needed. ]

[erbier]

( I would like that. While visiting a more advanced city, I studied some of their botany... there was a great deal of mathematics tied to some of their research. I never would have imagined. )

[ She hadn't understood so much of what she had tried to study on Concordia, it has been slow, careful progress, assisted by the hydroponic pods she purchased while there. They could take measurements for her in ways she otherwise would have misunderstood. ]

( Do you like anything about gardening? )

[redheadcarrier]

( Gardening? Not really. I've never tried. I had more important things to worry about. )

[ She sounds a touch confused. ]

( You think gardening is going to help us out here? )

fixed it

[erbier]

( I have always been a gardener. It was a... precious position to hold, in my world. If nothing else, I know I can cultivate food and medicine. )

[ She thinks that's important. ]

[redheadcarrier]

( I guess. It feels like.. I dunno. Not as productive or something. )

[ Not that Asuka sounds that sure about that. ]

[erbier]

( That's alright. )

[ It's not like she really wants to share her god-given sacred duty with others anyway. ]

( We all have our... distractions. )