[ Lacus had been ready to call today a wash in terms of talking to Rapt0r, but her U-pinion goes off just when she was about to retire into her cabana. She turns on her heels and heads to the beach instead, for some privacy.
Ring ring, here's an incoming voice connection! ]
Good evening, Rapt0r. What an eventful two days it has been on our little island.
[ She doesn't like thinking about it. Merlin's sole crime was wanting to meet with them, and he'd practically offered himself on a silver platter that way. ]
Is it because he called both of you out? Or because you did not trust each other to get the job done, despite your ability?
[ Lacus had been very aware that Rap0r is a killer, even in their first conversation. It's hypocritical to only feel more unsettled by now that somebody she knows has fallen victim. She's a little frustrated with herself for it.
But she is also good at keeping these emotions out of her voice entirely. ]
Well, at least you honored his wish.
[ That's... something? Probably. ]
And you've set the spiral of violence in motion. Lobelia already suspects there is a collaborator among our group. Others might hold similar suspicions.
[ And where there's mistrust... Well, next week is likely to have a corpse. ]
Our feigned carefreeness is certainly done away with. They do see you as a threat.
[ Though... Lacus still thinks that ghosts, as they appear in ghost stories, can kill just fine, but she's not in the mood to argue pointless semantics like that. ]
Was Ho-Oh the one to come up with the idea of culprit executions?
[ At least someone is having fun here... It should be disturbing, but in some way it comes as a relief as well. Enjoyment is such a simple emotion. ]
I thought that if it were up to just you, you might enjoy watching us struggle over a decision on what to do with killers in our middle. It would have put all concepts of mercy to the ultimate test, likely to crush them.
[ That's good to know. It tells her meetings aren't safe, should she become Rapt0r's enemy. Those seem like the most important times to keep watch on the group anyway. ]
Well, that's a relief. But now I have to wonder, did you come watch our concert? Though I don't assume it was your style of music at all.
[ That is... actually a good question. Lacus hesitates for a second. ]
A little?
[ That performance specifically wasn't really suited for their administrators at all, meant to encourage resilience among those on the island. But in principle of the thing, would she like him to listen? Yes. Singing's always been important to how she communicates. ]
[ He's probably going to hate all of her songs, but hey. You never know!
Lacus sits down in the sand and feels herself deflating. It's been a really long day. She'd been meaning to grill him about the situation some more, but... Maybe it's time to breathe for a moment first. ]
Beat it a few days ago. Dunno if I feel like doing a speedrun or no damage run yet.
[ There's so many ways to run Pokémon...
And sorry Lacus. ]
Hey, why're you still talking with me like this? Figured you'd still talk to me for info, but why the small talk? Ain't you scared of me? Or mad at me, or something else in between.
Maybe it's for the best best to interrogate the real questions instead. This time, Lacus doesn't hesitate. ]
I like knowing how you think.
[ She only takes a breath after getting that out, because that's the real answer and it's simply elaborating on it that makes it difficult to choose words. ]
I'm neither scared nor angry, no. I'm wary of you, but I am wary of most everyone on this island right now. I disagree with you, fundamentally, on the nature of the world and the path to the future. I'm sad. I mourn Merlin. I loathe what you did last night. But I knew it was within you to do something like that since the first time we talked.
[ To be angry about something, there must be a measure of disappointment, but Rapt0r hasn't betrayed her expectations at all. She's sad. That's all it is. ]
So has anything really changed since the last time we spoke?
[ There is a lot about their first conversation still running through her mind. What's a future in which Rapt0r could exist, a world in which he isn't an unfortunate minority that has to be dealt with in order for the majority to live? That's the kind of future Lacus wants to work towards, in her own world as well.
The world isn't something one creates, she'd once said to her friend. She still thinks this way. She alone is not going to decide the future, nor does she want to. But being in a position of power as she is now, she still needs to know the weight of her decisions.
She wants to have tea with Rapt0r. She wants to talk to him more. And that may all just come down to arrogance, a motivation he would despise in her even so, but it doesn't matter. He asked a question and he has received the truthful answer. ]
Will you accept my invitation? Will you kill me, if you do?
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Ring ring, here's an incoming voice connection! ]
Good evening, Rapt0r. What an eventful two days it has been on our little island.
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Hey, Lacus.
It has been, huh? I even got to stretch my legs!
[ At least someone's in a good mood tonight. ]
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[ Killed Merlin, but she's not here to moralize about that and she doesn't want to give the impression that she is. ]
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Is it because he called both of you out? Or because you did not trust each other to get the job done, despite your ability?
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And he was annoying too.
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But she is also good at keeping these emotions out of her voice entirely. ]
Well, at least you honored his wish.
[ That's... something? Probably. ]
And you've set the spiral of violence in motion. Lobelia already suspects there is a collaborator among our group. Others might hold similar suspicions.
[ And where there's mistrust... Well, next week is likely to have a corpse. ]
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[ This is the voice of someone unrepentant and also clueless about the one "nice" thing he's done... which probably wasn't on purpose either. Oops. ]
I'm good at doing that. And I was getting tired of hearing that we're weak or ghosts or whatever.
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[ Though... Lacus still thinks that ghosts, as they appear in ghost stories, can kill just fine, but she's not in the mood to argue pointless semantics like that. ]
Was Ho-Oh the one to come up with the idea of culprit executions?
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[ It's hard to pinpoint the emotion here, it's not prideful or even threatening, but something with a note of joy or perhaps fun. ]
How'd you guess? Yeah, course it was. The way he runs his organization back home is stuffed full of stupid rules and structure.
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I thought that if it were up to just you, you might enjoy watching us struggle over a decision on what to do with killers in our middle. It would have put all concepts of mercy to the ultimate test, likely to crush them.
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[ That might be his biggest consideration at the current moment tbh. ]
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[ She's pretty surprised by that. It seems more involved than just palm tree speaker supervision. ]
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It's still unsettling. ]
My. That's quite ruthless, spying on all our private and embarrassing moments.
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I'm not really into sims.
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Well, that's a relief. But now I have to wonder, did you come watch our concert? Though I don't assume it was your style of music at all.
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[ A beat. ]
Why, did you want me to?
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A little?
[ That performance specifically wasn't really suited for their administrators at all, meant to encourage resilience among those on the island. But in principle of the thing, would she like him to listen? Yes. Singing's always been important to how she communicates. ]
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[ A beat. ]
Then let me know next time I guess.
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[ He's probably going to hate all of her songs, but hey. You never know!
Lacus sits down in the sand and feels herself deflating. It's been a really long day. She'd been meaning to grill him about the situation some more, but... Maybe it's time to breathe for a moment first. ]
How's "Pokémon" going?
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[ There's so many ways to run Pokémon...
And sorry Lacus. ]
Hey, why're you still talking with me like this? Figured you'd still talk to me for info, but why the small talk? Ain't you scared of me? Or mad at me, or something else in between.
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Maybe it's for the best best to interrogate the real questions instead. This time, Lacus doesn't hesitate. ]
I like knowing how you think.
[ She only takes a breath after getting that out, because that's the real answer and it's simply elaborating on it that makes it difficult to choose words. ]
I'm neither scared nor angry, no. I'm wary of you, but I am wary of most everyone on this island right now. I disagree with you, fundamentally, on the nature of the world and the path to the future. I'm sad. I mourn Merlin. I loathe what you did last night. But I knew it was within you to do something like that since the first time we talked.
[ To be angry about something, there must be a measure of disappointment, but Rapt0r hasn't betrayed her expectations at all. She's sad. That's all it is. ]
So has anything really changed since the last time we spoke?
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[ A short burst of fabric cuts through briefly. ]
So yeah, it's more real. Like seeing a boss one shot another party member.
Still wanna have tea with me, Lacus?
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[ There is a lot about their first conversation still running through her mind. What's a future in which Rapt0r could exist, a world in which he isn't an unfortunate minority that has to be dealt with in order for the majority to live? That's the kind of future Lacus wants to work towards, in her own world as well.
The world isn't something one creates, she'd once said to her friend. She still thinks this way. She alone is not going to decide the future, nor does she want to. But being in a position of power as she is now, she still needs to know the weight of her decisions.
She wants to have tea with Rapt0r. She wants to talk to him more. And that may all just come down to arrogance, a motivation he would despise in her even so, but it doesn't matter. He asked a question and he has received the truthful answer. ]
Will you accept my invitation? Will you kill me, if you do?
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