LOCKED TO MERIDIAN

[leicesters]

[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.

Comments

[hauntedking]

That does not answer my question, Set.

[redsoil]

That's because I have not decided what the answer is. Yet.

[hauntedking]

Then I will not allow it.

[redsoil]

You do not "allow" me to do anything.

[ The mere idea of Dimitri trying to rise over him causes Set to rise, too. From sensible discussion of someone's costly action to personal ire. ]

Besides, what he did was against Meridian. Maybe we should put it to a vote from Meridian, if you will not let me pick a suitable punishment for taking our secrets to Zenith and acting against us. Is this how you treat all your opponents at home?

[hauntedking]

Even my direst enemy, the woman I felt I had no choice but to kill in the end, I gave a chance for a final parley. So yes, it is something I extend. If I can avoid more death, more war - and if I cannot, I fight with all my strength.

[ Dimitri, on the other hand is icily calm. ]

Allowing you to simply do what you will to someone I considered a friend is not something I can countenance. Know that.

[redsoil]

You still killed her. What meaning does such an honorable intention have, if it was not enough to reach her? What good does it do the rest of us, who have to pick up your slack because you will not conceptualize that winning this war is more important than anything we want!

[ Meanly said, perhaps with a shred of deep, deep insult to something vital inside of Set. Some tempestuous, injured part of him. ]

I am not saying to kill him. I am saying that "friend" of yours may have cost us Yima's death, Dimitri and you need to recognize that you can be a friend to someone and still hold them accountable. He has to be. He has to make up for this.

[ There is,

the softest hint of something desperate in his voice. As though Set really, really wants someone to blame. ( sorry it's link he's been through the WRINGER already ) ]

[hauntedking]

What good is winning if we discard the parts of ourselves we treasure? What good winning if I no longer recognize who I have become or if I become that person I swore to leave behind? I will not do that, Set.

[ And Dimitri, too, has that tinge of insult. Of having something, some vital part of him being dragged through the mud. ]

And the weight falls entirely on his shoulders, does it? He must pay for any perceived failure?

[redsoil]

It does! We all pay for our actions, why should he be sheltered from the consequences? Because you like him? Because you pity him?

[ He snaps, baring his teeth before drawing up, back. An animal rearing. ]

Maybe you can hold onto what parts of yourself you treasure. Maybe you can find satisfaction in maintaining some oath to people who will never be able to hold you to it, if you do not win for them. I will never half-ass my position in this war, because my world is far more important to me than myself!

[hauntedking]

And you think I treasure my people any less?

[ Dimitri's response has that cold chill of Faerghus - an icy anger with the power of a storm behind it. Darkening clouds and swirling winds. ]

If I did not, would I be here?

PRIVATE.

[redsoil]

I think we cannot do both. We cannot be invested in our importance and that of our worlds. Something has to give, and I would choose myself — I have before. I did exactly what you refuse to, long ago.

[ His tone drops, not into ice but into the long, narrow chokehold that always makes him breathless with frustration and despair. That turns him further from goodness and virtue, because nobody will compromise themselves to the extent he will ( he so believes ).

also he doesnt want sebastian sniffing around this vulnerability help, ]

I will never hold wishes for myself higher than that of my world's existence.

[hauntedking]

[ The sudden switch to a private conversation makes Dimitri pause - and some of the anger seems to drain out of their mental space. ]

...Set, I've walked that road. I've thrown it all away for the sake of bloody vengeance and pain. I... I know that it might seem like the only way forward. But it isn't, I promise you. We can fight this war without turning ourselves into hollow shells of ourselves.

[ Because it's Dimitri, there is the mental impression of a hand reaching forward. ]

[redsoil]

Dimitri.

[ It's a nice gesture. Maybe to someone else, it would be what they need. Set, on the other hand, cannot accept that offering — not only has he long since lost the right to, it would mar the reputation and position he's built for himself. ]

I was made this way. My decisions were destined, as much as they were my choices — and even if it means I continue to be that evil? I would rather do that, than find myself looking back at my world... regretting not compromising my comfort and dreams for that which I hold dear.

I have been making my peace with that role since it was forced on me.

[hauntedking]

It is not about my comfort, Set.

[ Dimitri responds, quietly. Or "quietly". ]

Believe it or not it is very much about whether I will manage to keep my eyes on my goal. If I allow myself to fall... to become that beast... I may end up pursuing vengeance or simple bloodlust over my ultimate goal. And I have said - I do not think you are absolutely evil. Nor do you need to be.