leicesters: (112)
Claude von Riegan ([personal profile] leicesters) wrote in [community profile] kenoscomm2024-03-08 01:40 pm

LOCKED TO MERIDIAN

[Claude's communion prescence has always been like a summer breeze; warm, easygoing, albeit difficult to read before it moves on. Now it has more of a brittle, bitter quality, like a looming dust-cloud he has to hold at a distance. There's no going back from this point when he knows things will only escalate from here, and so now seems like an important time to address his fellow Meri.]

The fight for the next Oracle will be on us soon. The Tribune may have been slain, but he entrusted the future of the worlds to us. Though he won't be able to help us see this through, we can still fight for him, and all the others we've lost along the way. We can fight for Springstar... and we can fight for Quetzalcoatl.

[There's a brief pause on this point. Her death deserves respect and acknowledgement, and she may not be the last to meet such a fate before the fighting is over.]

...We'll fight for your homes, too. After all, our worlds aren't that different, right? They might be flawed in their own ways, and there might even be some of you who would rather stay here when this is done. But every world and the life on it is precious, and it beats whatever phony world Yima and her followers come up with.

Speaking of Yima: I've discussed this with a few people already, but I suspect she's still alive. When the Blight almost destroyed Kenos, somehow she was still around. When I asked her about it, she said she wasn't bound by time like a normal person is. She can exist in different times and different places simultaneously; I don't know how it works, but maybe she even foresaw this attempt on her life before it even happened.

That said, it's just speculation, so we might as well play dumb and behave towards Zenith as if we're convinced she's dead for now. It'll be easier for us that way.

[Others have probably arrived at a similar conclusion, perhaps people among Zenith's ranks too, but it bears saying, particularly for those newly arrived to the conflict.]

Anyway, enough about her -- how about we use this opportunity for a little strategy get-together? We have a few new faces around, so feel free to introduce yourself and your capabilities.

For those of us who have been around longer, feel free to toss in an introduction too. More importantly, share what you know about Zenith and its current capabilities, in combat or otherwise. Any insight into their current thinking would be useful right now, too. What's their morale like? We know by now that some of them really hate our guts, and I wonder how much their desire for revenge is going to play into the next battle...

[He sounds casual, almost flippant, but there's a serious point in there he's sure he doesn't need to overstate: the more loyal Zenites are going to have some serious motivation in the next battle to get back at them, whether they believe Yima is gone or not.]

Let's not let our own judgement be clouded by revenge, even if we've sustained losses. We need to go into this with a clear head, looking toward the future.

Oh-- on that note, Hayame wants to speak with some of you about some further strategising either before or after the Oracle. Sorry that's a little vague, but I'm sure she'll talk to you about it properly when the time comes. For now, let's just focus on one thing at a time.
hauntedking: (14)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2024-03-08 05:51 pm (UTC)(link)
I can't say; I didn't deal with her directly all that much... but based on what we've seen, perhaps she was.
clockpunk: (039)

[personal profile] clockpunk 2024-03-08 06:32 pm (UTC)(link)
Charisma, right.

[ a long sigh. ]

Also, even though my opinion's kinda meaningless, I won't agree with any shattering. It's backward, to do it. Claimin' to want to restore things, n'then being so ready to break others just because they're in the way.
hauntedking: (08)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2024-03-08 07:16 pm (UTC)(link)
That's certainly fair enough. I don't like the idea of it myself - if I had my way we wouldn't be fighting this war at all.

[ He sighs. ]

But they continue to tell us that our end goals are incompatible. And... I don't know if I can take the risk.
clockpunk: (053)

[personal profile] clockpunk 2024-03-08 07:24 pm (UTC)(link)
It's something you can't really say whether it'll happen or not now, I guess. Heat of the moment, if you're already... like, resigned to it?

[ a shrug. ]

Someone's gonna tell me off for being naïve, but I still think it's sad.
hauntedking: (17)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2024-03-08 10:48 pm (UTC)(link)
You're not naive. It is sad and is something to be mourned. Having to fight these people isn't a victory or even something good.
clockpunk: (058)

[personal profile] clockpunk 2024-03-09 06:11 am (UTC)(link)
I probably am naïve.

[ said with a shrug of dismissal, but there's a layer of frustration under it. ]

This sucks, I'll still fight regardless, but at the same time, I really can't help but think of their goal as understandable as well. It'll make fightin' harder, and some people here really hate that.
hauntedking: (08)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2024-03-09 02:53 pm (UTC)(link)
I don't hold any rancor for their chosen goal. It's only that I want to restore what's been lost... and they cannot see that as worthy. It's unfortunate.