locked to meridian + ota

[warmare]

[Hayame had plenty to say about this disgraceful farce the moment she had regained consciousness... But she waited. She waited, so that her emotions would be as locked down and as under control as she could manage. Until only harsh anger and the burn of judgement come through- at least, for now.

First, she addresses only Meridian.]

I hope you are proud of yourself.

Those of you who have been too weak to commit properly to this cause, content to let those with drive and will do the winning of Oracles on your and your world's behalf.

Those of you who claim allegiance to Meridian but have been content to play "neutral" and hide like a weak little bug in the shadow of those more powerful than you.

Those of you who could not draw a single line in the sand and loved playing friend or whore too much to break off relations with people working to ensure that the lives of everyone in your world are snuffed out permanently.

Those of you who have refused to shatter the shards of our enemies, whining about the sanctity of a soul, even though that is the only way to kill someone properly in this twisted world.

Mourn that sun goddess for the power she possessed that our faction has lost. Mourn the kindness she showed you, if you so wish. But I will impart a lesson unto you- If someone is kind to everyone, then their kindness means absolutely nothing. That empty-headed fool of a woman had her shard shattered by the very man whose shard she protected, after I and another killed him in the labyrinth of the Harbinger Oracle trial. If she had given that foul thing back to us so that I might crush it beneath my hoof, then she would be alive today.

That is what kindness of that nature will reap you. A disgraceful public execution at the hands of a wizened, corpse-gnawing gaki barely managing the veneer of a man.

If you wish to dedicate yourself further to the actual cause you claim to serve, or if you wish to train and empower yourself, I will gladly help you. It would be my honor.

But if your plan is to continue living the sort of shameful existence that helped allow for the assassination of Springstar's Tribune at his own godsdamned home, then either purge yourself of that treacherous weakness... or I will try to find the time in my days to do it for you.

[Maybe this is where she could stop, take a breath... But she does not. The rest, cold and hateful and roiling with anger, is said to everyone, Zenite and Unharmonized alike.]

To all those who still claim allegiance to Zenith... I will not waste breath trying to convince you of anything at all, let alone now, after what your faction has wrought upon countless innocents. Whether you are a poor thing who would abandon every life in your world simply because you were treated badly, whether you are a pathetic thing who cannot muster the will to hope for anything but that sacred bitch on high and a committee of degenerates making a new world for you to exist in, or whether you are a sick thing who delights in watching worlds burn and people die... I, Hayame of Echigo, do not care, and I will not show mercy to one any more than the other.

Unlike, it seems, the many dishonorable among you, I say this to you plainly and clearly.

I will disable you if I see you step foot in Springstar.

I will hunt down your cornerstones and smash them to pieces.

And I will kill you if you put yourself between me and the possibility of returning to my world and my duty.




... Ah, yes. To those of you who have still not chosen a side, even after seeing what has occurred this moon... My advice to you is to stay Unharmonized, to pick up a hoe, and to go tend crops in Alenroux. You obviously lack the determination required for this conflict... and the people require food. Go on.

If you need a recommendation for a farmer looking for labor, I know plenty. Do you fancy turnips, or buckwheat?

Comments

[warmare]

Are you deaf, and none of us have known it this entire time?

I know that I told you not to show yourself before me until you learned to at least pretend to be more than some simpering girl crying neutrality and hiding behind a man.

And you obviously have not learned how to do that.

So how about you state the actual reason you have decided to risk your pretty little neck today?

[Because from where she's standing, it sort of seems like she really just wants to test her.]

[appeale]

Oh, do I need your permission to speak? I didn't realise.

[ the reason is simply that she's sick of these people, really. the reason is that Set promised he would never abandon her, even if she was difficult, even if she picked fights and threw tantrums.

the reason is that she's tired of listening to others insult her. ]

I'm saying this because I don't want anybody else hounding me, in case you've worked them up into a self-righteous frenzy with all of this.

I've changed my mind, too. About being "nothing." So I would appreciate it if you didn't call me that any further.

[warmare]

It is almost adorable you consider this hounding, when I did not even put your name to my lips.

You may not need my permission to speak, but in knowingly defying the conditions I set before you, you test my patience, you seek to make an declawed beast of me, and you risk consequences.

Will you actually take them this time?

Or will you whine until someone comes to speak to me on your behalf again?

[appeale]

I'm not going to live like a dead rat anymore just because you find my existence offensive. If you want to beat me for that, fine. Just don't pretend it's anything other than taking your own personal issues out on a civilian. You're so self-centred that you think everyone should adhere to your standards, and everything is a slight against you.

[ it is not mere bravado; when Ruby says she won't flinch from a beating, she means it. though she doesn't speak it aloud, her Communion reflects a numbness born from familiarity. I'm used to enduring pain, after all. ]

I'm not the one making an issue, Comandante. All I've ever asked is to be quietly left alone, and that's all I'm saying now, to everyone. Not just you.

—Your kind recommendation of staying Unharmonised doesn't actually work, by the way. The Unharmonised can't clear Discord; they'll just turn into monsters, sooner or later.

1/2

[warmare]

I will not beat you.

[She isn’t a farmer frustrated with their ox and armed with a switch.

But it might should be concerning that she does not say what she will do instead.]

Nor will I continue tolerating these lies. You are not a civilian. No shard-beader is, no matter what you fucking wish for yourself or would have been otherwise. You are either a boon to Meridian or a burden. And you might have been quietly left alone by me if you had not decided to come declare before me once again your intent to be largely useless.

[warmare]

[Her recommendation doesn’t work?]

I thought you liked monsters.

[appeale]

I like them very much. They're far better company. But I like having opposable thumbs, myself.

[ being that she has no pride, Ruby feels no need to defend herself beyond this point. she made her statement, and she feels satisfied. this argument will only go in circles if someone doesn't cut it off; she has no problem being the "weak" one who backs down. ]

Anyway, this civilian has said her piece. Good luck in the upcoming Oracle trial, Hayame. And everyone else, too. I'll be sure to cheer you all on from the sidelines, as the High Priestess of Set.

[ this time, she closes the Communion connection quietly, without fuss. ]

[warmare]

No shard-bearer is a civilian.

And no cheer from a bitch who will just as easily cheer on Zenith if pressed is worth having in my ear.

[She doesn't care if she's talking to the godsdamned air- she bites it out anyway, at nothing.

And then, at anyone listening in-]

Now get back to actually thinking about how to defeat our enemies while dragging refuse along behind us!