trans_9 | Man, you look just like I feel [Open]

"Point." And he hadn't considered the idea that Yavek was manipulating them prior to the Punishment itself; he was too busy reacting to the immediate threat, and unfortunately the only reaction he had in stock was dread and helplessness. "It's just...I hope this goes away. I can't think. And thinking's the only defense I have and my brain just keeps getting stuck back there."

It doesn't help with that helpless feeling. He's resigning himself to what he sees are the facts: he's going to spend the rest of his life on this ship, and that life will be short, because if he doesn't die on the next mission it might be the next one, or the one after that, or the one after that - and there's no escape anymore. Not even the fantasy of escape.

He lets out a long breath, as if trying to vacate his body of oxygen entirely. "I noticed. But I had a pet theory they triggered SHODAN on purpose and just didn't want to interfere."

"Yeah, well. You'll get it back." That Zouichi was pretty much sure of. "And once we ship the Daligig off the ship, we can find a new planet for you to get off on."

He frowned, thinking back to the SHODAN incident. "That would be... awfully circuitous of them. Besides, if they need all of us in this war, why wake up a murderous AI that killed a bunch of their so-called Chosen?" Not that Zouichi thought it was impossible, just unlikely. Besides, in all of SHODAN's copious monologuing, she'd never mentioned the Daligig.

"Mm." Howard doesn't look convinced. He looks like the whole situation scared the hope of escape right out of him.

"I didn't say it was a good theory. It's just awful suspicious that they hid out while that went down. It's suspicious that they put that AI in the ship in the first place." He sighs and lets Emergency Rations lick the inside of his ear. "I don't think they really need all of us. If they did, they wouldn't send us on missions where we might die. I think they just don't want us escaping. We're a liability if we're alive but not under their control."

It's not an especially profound thought, but it took him ten hours to think it through.

Zouichi nodded. "It is suspicious. But if they don't need all of us -- why chase you down? Just to make a point? Because that backfired spectacularly. And other than you and Orc, I don't know a single person on the current crew who's ever tried to get off at the next station. I mean... what, did they think you were going to go on the warpath and lead an armed resistance against them?"

"I guess they don't know what we'd do. It's not like they go to much effort to get to know us."

"If it was to make a point, the point is that they're freaking idiots." The one thing Howard walked away from that situation knowing is that, from now on, his survival depends on taking down the Daligig at all costs. He hasn't been able to come up with even the wisps of a plan, but they've solidified an enemy.

He frowns, then sits up and drinks some of his soup, as if he just remembered it's there. "Either they're really bad at public relations, which we know they are, or we might be an information liability and not even know it. I mean, the people on Agrestic knew stuff but not everything. And me and Sakura have been in contact with the Ohm, and they're not what the Daligig said at all."

"Yes. And that's another thing that doesn't make any sense -- except when you factor in how arrogant they are. Why bother to get to know us, when they think they can rule us through threats and belligerence?" Another thing Zouichi didn't understand, in other words.

"And why let us stop at Agrestic at all? Surely they might have guessed we wouldn't just keep to ourselves. And that we'd learn something from the people there."

He stopped. "What do you mean, in contact with the Ohm?"

Edited 2012-03-19 02:38 (UTC)

"I don't think they see us as individual people. We're just one big bunch of subhumans to them." He drains the soup from the bowl. "It doesn't make any sense. It's like they keep messing up and then trying way too hard to overcompensate. I don't know. I can't think straight."

He lies back down. "Sakura and the new Superman and that Jaime kid, we used his spacesuit to get in contact with them. And they're...they don't realize there's a war. And they don't understand things that aren't part of their hivemind."

"Yeah, well. How long have they had to learn that other people aren't hiveminds, exactly? Because it sounds like they've made contact with an awful lot of species, and most are pissed off at them." When you had that many subpar relationships, it was time to look at the common denominator.

"...You were going to tell me about that, right?" Because that was kind of important. Not quite as immediately important as the whole getting-the-Daligig-out thing, but still. Important.

"No, it's more than that. Like they don't think a war's going on because they think wars are things that happen between people, and they don't think they're hurting people because the only things they see are people are in their hivemind. I think. So they're crazy fucking stupid, but they're not the sadistic evil our Overlords want us to think they are." Apathetic, stupid evil can maybe be reasoned with.

"Of course I was going to tell you. Stuff just came up, alright? It was like two days before we landed on Agrestic and I had a medical shift and don't accuse me of doing something I didn't, okay?"

This overreaction brought to you by our sponsors, Fear and Trauma.

"No, no. I'm talking about the Daligig. And why they keep treating us like it's natural for us to just fall in line behind them without questioning a single order." The Ohm, at least, had an excuse for Not Getting It.

Zouichi sighed. "Relax. I just... I don't know. I'm tired of all the secrets on this ship. It's like people keep secrets just for the sake of keeping secrets and it's shooting ourselves in the foot. Sorry."

"Maybe it is, for some people. Maybe out of all their groups of people they push around, we're an amona-anoma-whatever, we're an exception."

Howard takes a deep breath and relaxes. "No, it's okay. I'm way high-strung right now. And I feel you on that one. We might not even have this whole divide with Council if people just talked to each other."

He hugs his arms to himself. "Besides, I'm pretty much over keeping secrets from you. It just doesn't work."

"Anomaly?" Zouichi thought about that for a second. "I guess it's possible, but a little hard to believe. I mean, out of all the people in the multiverse, we're the only ones they've made angry enough to fight back?"

He snorted. "As long as there are people like Kang taking up space there, scheming and pursuing personal priorities instead of actually doing anything to help the crew at large, the Council's going to stay unpopular. And if it's true what they say, that the Council's only a civilian organization with no other powers, how come they're up front and center every time we're at another Galilee? Where are they when we actually need them?" Zouichi had a dim view of almost everyone on the Council, in case Howard hadn't yet noticed. In fact, he was pretty much sure their sole purpose on the ship was getting elected to the Council.

He put a hand gently on Howard's shoulder. "Anyway, maybe we can work out a deal. Three official secrets a year."

Edited 2012-03-19 19:26 (UTC)

"That's the word." Howard chews his split lip. "No, not the only ones, but a minority. When I did some research on Agrestic there's a few planets that want to boot the Daligig from the GIA, but most of them don't."

He frowns. "I can work around Kang. I get Kang. His brain works like mine does. We have an arrangement going on, so that'll probably help with the communication aspect. I'm more worried about Zetta and his whole..." Howard shudders and closes his eyes, his next words eking out. "He practically brought popcorn to the Punishment."

He nods. "Deal. As long as they're not anything super major."

"Wonder why. Must be their charming talent for diplomacy." Or maybe no one in the Daligig ever bothered to visit all those planets. A little harder to anger people when you were little more than a story to them.

Zouichi rolled his eyes. "An 'arrangement', huh? Let me guess -- he lets you in on secrets, as long as you don't tell anyone else what they are. Because that's exactly what we need, more cloak and dagger. Why should the crew be told about anything that concerns them? Clearly information should be restricted to the people who actually need to know it -- the people who're supposed to be fixing buildings and arranging for food stockpiles." Which. No one on the Council actually seemed to be doing.

He snorted. "Zetta? Can't say I noticed him there. But he's just some blowhard clown, anyway. Sooner or later, someone's going to throw him out an airlock... again."

"...wait, were you being serious about that secret thing?"

"There's got to be some reason. Maybe Daligig are like, some universal standard of sex god in some cultures." Here, follow the good-looking Evil Overlord.

"He lets me in on stuff in exchange for me keeping him up to date on Command." Which is a system they wouldn't even need in place if Command bothered to talk to people. Ever. "Did I tell you about Leon's bullshit excuse for why he never told us anything? I will, but I'm going to stand on the other side of the room in case you want to flip my bed over or something."

He exhales deep. "I hope so. He was pretty much cheerleading the Daligig."

Howard looks surprised. "A little serious. I mean, it's not like I expect you to tell me absolutely everything either."

He choked. "Somehow, I... doubt it." Just the idea of... no. Just no.

"Ah. Of course. So he can weasel information out of you." Whatever willingness Zouichi had when it came to excusing some of Howard's less-than-stellar behaviors, it was evident that he wasn't predisposed to extend the same courtesy to pretty much anyone on the Council.

Zouichi sighed, and brought his palm to his forehead in advance. "I promise not to flip any tables. Or beds. And I guess I expected you to... I don't know, bargain with me or something."

"What, you don't think Yavek's a hot piece of...of...yeah, you're right. Nope."

Howard shrugs. "It's not like it's exclusive information to him. I'm not stupid, Zou. I can hold my own in a negotiation. Unless it's bargaining for secrets with you, I guess."

Howard can't believe he's saying this with a totally straight face, but, "he didn't tell us anything because he didn't want us to miss him if he got repodded."

Yep. Nope.

Zouichi snorted. "I'm not saying you are stupid. In fact, if anyone's getting the better end of that deal, it's probably you. I just don't like how those people operate."

"...Well, I guess it worked. I don't think very many people miss him." In fact, he wasn't even sure when it was that Leon had been repodded.

"Me neither, but hey, when in Rome." At some point he's going to have to leave his bedroom and face the world again, get back to working with these negotiations and deals. He doesn't want to.

"I sure don't. Then again, I guess it means no one's going to get on my case for skipping work. Although I guess if the Daligig wanted to hurt us by taking away our leaders, they're batting oh for two on the mighty overlord deal this week."

Emergency Rations tries to lick the inside of Zouichi's nostrils.

"Did I tell you I tried going to therapy last week?"

Emergency Rations, what on earth were you doing? Zouichi scratched behind her ears affectionately. "To be honest, I'm not sure most of the repoddings even made much of a difference. Who got podded, anyway?" He could make guesses, but since he never saw most of the repoddees around anyway, that's just what they'd be -- guesses.

He blinked at Howard. "Wait, what? No. What happened? And who'd you see?"

"Leon and...some other dudes." Whoops. Guess the system's more broken than Howard realized. "Did you notice that the acting commander didn't even show up to the riot?"

He rolls his eyes. "Total disaster. I saw that Mark Lilly guy and he's about as dumb as a sack of hair. He told me I needed to go on medication and that it's my fault I'm afraid of things."

"Yeah. I did." Zouichi's mouth tightened. "Some changes, huh?"

He gave Howard a weird look. "What kind of advice is that? Actually, what kind of therapist is that?"

"At least the head of Security showed up, I guess." Emergency Rations goes for Zouichi's nose again, so Howard snaps his fingers to call the cat back to him. "I don't know if people came because they thought they could stop it or just morbid curiosity, mostly."

He winces a bit, wondering what it must have felt like to be on the other side, like Zou. Watching and having been unable to help.

"I can't tell. I never seen one before so I'm not sure if he just really really sucks, or if they're all going to tell me that shit."

"Maybe both," said Zouichi. "I don't think some people even know what Punishment is." He didn't particularly care to dwell on what it had been like to watch, helpless to move, as Howard awaited Punishment. It was probably something for which he'd never forgive the ship, last-minute save or no.

"I'm going to go with the theory that he probably had no idea what he was talking about if he was blaming you for everything."

"How can you be awake on the ship for more than three days and not go find out what a Punishment is?" What is it with people being so completely ignorant about the place they live?

"I'll cosign on that theory. I mean, it's not like I dumped my whole life story on him, but he pretty much told me I was crazy for worrying about the air filters on the ship and stuff."

Edited 2012-03-20 05:33 (UTC)

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard

Re: Howard