Upon Vestia: Chapter Fourteen

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(Cause the old thread won't split.)

flying_purple_monkfish wrote:"aww poor little green mouse." Luka laughed. "That trap is ridiculous."

The swarm bobbed up and down in a nod. --the-- --people-- --here-- --value-- --freedom-- --for-- --some-- --above-- --all-- --else.-- --It-- --will-- --not-- --be-- --the-- --last-- --time-- --this-- --gets-- --them-- --into-- --trouble--

"Man you guys must hate those ones with the "I am not a robot" tick boxes. Like, do you just use semantics? I'm an ANDROID actually so hah tick the box? That's so what i'd do." Matt nodded, glancing sidelong at the irate Luka. "Sure James, but not chess, I never remember how the horses move."

"And there, is the question." She placed the knight on a place to check Asher, she leaned forward. "The scouts are only there to record history in its purest form as well as ensure the liberty of sapient beings. Nothing more. Now, there are a few that DO wish to go to war and completely purge the Galaxy of forms of oppression, genocide and slavery. But then where would we be? As poor as the souls we condemn. So we merely stay on the sidelines and keep most of our thoughts to ourselves." Vanessa didn't seem as bothered by the topic as Quinn. In fact, it was almost challenging. "Your assumptions of us are just as derogatory as ours to yours, wouldn't you think... Miss Luka?"

"I emailed the web designer one one site that used those, telling her I objected on the grounds that I was a robot and my identity was being erased," James said, "She told me to stop being stupid." He looked tragic, but went to find a game. He was staying out of the zoo animals debate, thank you very much.

Asher quietly moved a bishop to protect his king. If Vanessa tried to take the bishop, his knight would take her piece too.

"Take your pity and shove it." Luka snapped. "people don't kill the animals they put in cages in zoos either, they just watch them and clap when they do something they like. Isn't that basically what your precious guild are doing? Watching and ooing and ahhing whenever a species does something they deem worthy? Why should any species do anything to amuse them? Why should we have to be watched, judged and criticized from the sidelines? Do you think the animals behind the bars enjoy being watched? People don't like being watched, particularly not by people who think they're better. " She shook her head. "And don't call me miss, you will address me as Lieutenant Falk. I am not a child."

Kay moved over and put a hand on Luka's shoulder.

This isn't an argument any of us can win. He told her.

Luka glowered. "It's not about winning, it's about being right. You might all be happy being watched constantly by a group of people with rather dubious and uncertain motives, but i'm not. And neither, I don't think, would many true Imperium citizens."

Kay flinched.

I don't like the implications either, but we don't know the full story and I don't think we'll get it by being hostile.

Luka snorted. "Fine, then let her sit all high and mighty looking down on us. You know something though? For all you seem to think my people are awful, at least we never enslaved anyone and at least we fight fair. There is no glory in defeating a defenseless enemy and no honor in slavery. The only person who deserve to be judged in this room is YOU." She rose from her chair and moved to leave.

Kay sighed.

Matt winced. "Why.. why DO they record history?" He asked. Hey, he was actually curious. "What do they use that information for?"

"If you are Lieutenant Falk, then I am Venus the Huntress." Vanessa cackled drunkenly. "Though I am certain many in this room would not like that title for what it's worth." She suddenly looked bored as Luka addressed her past, and she made a hand gesture and muttered something. She shook her head. "The only person who have started this is you, Lieutenant Falk. Didn't your superior teach you how to fight tactfully?"

She looked at Matt, "Depends. During times of peace, the information is stored away to commend species achievements and know the full truth of who did what and who earns the right of such titles. It could also be used to rediscover lost knowledge, like say an old remedy that could cure an epidemic. In times of war, it's quite easy what it could be used for."

She took a sip of her drink again, "I suppose some would LIKE to have their species' history lost in the sands of time, if she is unhappy..."

Luka muttered something in Satare and stormed off down the hall.

"Awards and commendations? That seems a bit... wierd. Do you hand out stickers? YOu talk about cures for epidemics, but you also said they don't interfere. So why are they stockpiling intel if they never intend to use it? " Matt shook his head, it did seem pretty wierd. "And hey, go easy on her, she's a long way from home and it's pretty hard to adjust to all this. "

[Her title is something she earned, she had every right to be proud of it, as I am of my nursing degree. You forget Vanessa, the culture of our homeworld is steeped in military tradition, ranks are extremely important and to forget someone's rank is considered extremely disrespectful. Whether intended or not, I would think, since you claim to know so much about other cultures, that you would be able to respect them. Do you really believe that any of us here would judge a person for their title and not for the person they are? ] He chewed his lip, he didn't much like having to scold Vanessa but he felt somewhat sorry for Luka. It had to be hard, having grown up so indoctrinated and then end up here of all places. The culture shock must have been enormous.
No wonder she was in a bad mood. She needed to learn to shut up and not pick fights with immortals, it generally just didn't work out.

[I can't sit and defend the actions of the Imperium, but there are so many good and decent people there. Just.. not a particularly yielding government and centuries of tradition that won't change overnight. That said, we still maintain a degree of pride in our heritage. It may not be perfect, but it's part of who we are. It's home and one day, I like to believe, they can pursue a more diplomatic approach to their disputes. ]

Matt snorted. "Yeah and pigs will start piloting space craft."

Kay shot his brother a withering look.

"Have the guild gone to war before?" Matt asked.

The swarm hesitated, the buzzing got louder as a few more of the insects joined the swarm to tell them about the games room. Silly girl, you'd think Luka would have learned by now not to talk about her home world and not to rise to the bait when others did.
The swarm managed a noise that almost sounded like tutting.

--

Luka meanwhile went to go punch something.

"The million dollar question, Mattias." Vanessa said softly, "The million dollar question..." she suddenly giggled, "Though, the Guild does apparently have a hard time with scouts 'accidentally' spilling some information to non-members when it comes to such remedies."

For once, Vanessa glared, and glared hard at Kaylr. It was a piercing stare, not as haughty and formal as she had been before when she chastised people on professionalism. This was the glare of someone who had been personally offended.

"You think so little of me, Kaylr, that I would forget that?" She suddenly said off handedly, beginning to stand as she looked away. "I do not condemn Luka for the actions of her empire, and yet she had reared her head and sneered at me with the mention of the Guild, something I'm no longer any part of. I only laughed when she became haughty towards me. Did you wish me to react differently? I showed no disrespect towards her culture; I merely told her the general beliefs of the Guild the last time I had checked. It was never about what I thought. It was she who had given me such assumptions of character, and for that I laughed instead of being offended. But it... appears that one cannot escape such assumptions here."

She turned to Mattias, her eyes softening. "Only once. And you have already heard of it."

With that, she began to retire from the room, as silent as she almost always was. Her mana drink lay forgotten on the table.

"Well.. that's not exactly reassuring... " Matt remarked.

Kay recoiled from Vanessa's glare. [I try not to make assumptions about you Vanessa, as I know little to nothing about you. But have I not shown time and time again that I am able to look beyond your past and attempt to support you and Merith? Yet still you both assume the worst of me, why? You talk about Luka, and myself making assumptions, look at yourself. For goodness sake Vanessa, I don't want to argue with you, I simply hoped to explain why she was so insulted by a specific thing you said.] Kay looked irritated, but he also looked worried. [Do not think for a moment she will not be spoken to about her behavior as well. That said, what you do tell us of the guild IS unsettling and concerning to many of us. i would appreciate the effort to ensure we understood exactly what we were flying ourselves into. Please, don't.. go. Finish your game] He exhaled deeply and rubbed his temples. [I'll go speak to her.]

Matt tensed. Man, why did there always have to be drama? "Come on, finish your game... and your drink.. It's fine.. you're our friend right? " He tried desperately to ease the situation.

Vanessa seemed to consider this. Slowly she sat back down. No longer was she as lenient to speak as her alcohol had allowed her too before. Now she was brooding and silent, no longer was she finding the fun in a game of chess.

Rather, her mood had set her sights on completely dominating the board as she began using telekinesis to move the pieces. She didn't go for the piece -- it was a KNIGHT that had checked the king, remember? Moving something in front of the piece played no matter. The king would have had to be moved, and Asher did not do that.

The knight knocked the king off the board. She took a long drink and stood again. "Finished." She muttered.

She gave Matthew one long, glum and disbelieving look. "I know you, Mattias. You are a man who is very passionate on his morals. It is a good thing. But Merith and I have broken those morals time and time again in the past. I know that you were more than merely unhappy when you found out our transgressions that we had shared. It does not surprise me. None of it." She began walking off again, the room making her stuffy and uncomfortable as she shifted into her simplí form, the orb wobbling lazily down the hall, going to the abandoned rec rooms to meditate.

Matt blinked... what the hell was that supposed to mean?
He looked at the others uncomfortably. "So uh... guess that means game time's over?"

Kay shook his head and left the room, he wasn't sure if he should go talk to Luka or leave her to vent her frustrations.
Instead he wandered toward one of the rec rooms and found Esk sleeping.

He found him some water, dug some pain killers from his pockets and set both down in front of him before turning to leave.

"What'd you do this time?" Esk asked blearily.

Kay froze. What?

Esk kept his eyes closed. "You're here because you're feeling guilty about something... so what'd you do?"

Kay frowned. I probably made a disagreement worse.

Esk snorted. "It's funny, for someone who can't talk you seem to be really good at saying the wrong thing."

Kay smiled softly I note you said can't, rather than your usual won't.

"Yeah, I figure even you aren't stubborn enough to stop yourself screaming in pain." Esk opened one eye and moved to take the painkillers. "I get pain relief?"

Kay nodded. I don't approve of what you two did, but that doesn't mean I should torture you about it.

"How noble." Esk snorted and took the pills. "So, you're trying to make yourself feel better by doing nice things. How's that working for you?"

Kay lowered his head. It didn't help much.

"So what happened?" Esk asked boredly, putting his feet back up on the table and leaning back in his chair.

Ellie looked depressed. "We need to stop being sociable, holy crap."

Asher looked after Vanessa, considering following her. He really wasn't sure he should. He went and patted Ellie on the shoulder instead. Poor girl just wanted to have fun and forget all the trauma of the past week.

~~
Ethan looked at Swarm, confused.

Matt forced a smile. "Yeah... I don't... really know what happened there. " He sighed. Damn, the stress seemed to be really getting to everyone. He was half tempted to just go sink into the pool again, at least it was calm and quiet there.

Swarm took a minute or two to collect themselves. --games-- --night-- --seems-- --to-- --have-- --ended-- they explained as a few more insects joined them. --looks-- --like-- --you-- --were-- --wise-- --to-- --skip-- --it--

Well that sounded ominous to Ethan. "Anyone bleeding on the floor?" he asked, half joking.

~~
Ellie wiped her eyes hastily, and turned away, trying to not let anyone see how sad she was that games night had been sabotaged just like those movie nights, and like everything. "It's cool, things happen. Uh, class dismissed. Or something."

--no-- Swarm told him. --Just-- --tense--
They explained briefly what they'd witnessed

---

Matt got up and came over to Ellie, hugging her around the shoulders as best he could. "hey, it's okay." He spoke softly. "People are just grumpy. It's been a rough time of it lately, I think.. just everyone's a bit tense. " Well that was an understatement. "It'll be okay."

Ethan snorted. "Drama queens, the lot of them. Guess that's what happens when you go on a fancy cruise where they have bubble baths and pretty glass light fixtures."

~~
"Yeah," Ellie sighed, "I'm good. I just wish people would shut up and pretend to be happy for a while sometimes!" Which was selfish, but who cared? These guys were pretty selfish with their stupid arguments about ethics too. Damn it, Luka, damn it.

James decided to sneak off. Asher decided he couldn't help much here, so he followed James. He was kinda worried about the guy after hearing the tone in his voice earlier, okay?

Matt made soothing noises and hugged Ellie. "I know... me too. It'd be nice wouldn't it? just.. to have no drama for a little while. " He smiled softly. "Wanna come to the arcade and kick my ass at games that involve hand eye coordination?"

--

Swarm bobbed up and down. --never-- --a-- --dull-- --moment.--

"Yeah, that sounds good," Ellie smiled weakly. "You aren't prone to random arguments when we're supposed to be having fun at least."

~~
Ethan looked amused. "Learn something new every day by listening to them, I guess?"

Matt nodded. "Yeah, I try to avoid arguments. They usually end with me getting punched in the face you know?"
He chuckled, trying very hard to keep things light.

--

--we-- --like-- --it-- --here--

James headed off to go find some dusting to do.

Asher followed, and after a bit caught up with his brother. He’d heard the discomfort in James’ voice earlier, when they were talking about his… thing with Acus. James had always been so careful to sound cheerful about it before, and it worried him a lot to hear this. Honestly, it was bothering him a lot more than that argument. A few people debating about the Satare Empire and privacy? Way less important than whether James was okay. “James?” he asked quietly, “Do you want to talk?”

James stopped and turned to look at Asher. “About what?” he asked, hoping he sounded like he genuinely didn’t know.

“Acus,” Asher said quietly.

James controlled his face well. He had just known Asher was going to ask about that “It was a one-time thing. We had fun. It’s never going to happen again. There’s nothing to talk about.”

The older android watched him uncertainly. Yeah, he wasn’t convinced. But he also didn’t want to pressure James into talking about something he’d rather not.

“Look,” James said after a few unhappy seconds, “He’s a decent guy, but he’s a complete idiot. He didn’t realize my act was partly a defense mechanism. He didn’t realize I still barely knew him, and that I was trying to play it safe, and keep him from becoming my enemy. And I didn’t have the faintest clue what he’d do if I refused completely, even though he claimed I was free to say no. I knew he was nuts, and I knew he was moody, and I had no idea at that point that he really was a good guy in his own dumbass way. It’s not his fault, and it’s not my fault. We both didn’t have the full picture, so he suggested something he probably shouldn’t have, and I agreed when I probably shouldn’t have. It was dumb, but he wasn’t being cruel.”

Asher carefully forced himself to not look angry, or pained, or anything else. He’d guessed that James’ flirting was just an act, intended to let him maintain some illusion of free will, but hearing his suspicions confirmed was incredibly painful. “Is there anything I can do to help?” he asked weakly.

“No,” James closed his eyes for a moment, “Of course there isn’t. It happened, it stinks that it happened the way it did, but there’s no reason to dwell on it.” He shrugged, “And now I’m free, so what do I care anyway?”

Asher nodded. “I guess you’re right. I…” he tried to figure out what to say, “I’m glad you don’t blame yourself. He should have known better though.”

James smiled wryly. “Like I said, the Captain’s an idiot.”

“I’ll try to steer the others off the topic if it ever comes up again,” Asher said softly, patting James shoulder, “if you don’t mind.”

James smiled. “I think I’d like that.” He hugged Asher hard, “You’re a good brother, you know that?”

Asher hugged him back. “I do my best. I love you, James.”

James released Asher after a bit and shooed him off down the hall. “Go on, go bother someone or fix a shuttle or something. I’m fine.”

Asher hesitated, then smiled softly. “Okay. You know I’m always here for you, right?”

“Yeah man, I know.” James smiled genuinely. Asher really did worry a lot, it was sweet. “Shoo!”

Asher let himself be shooed off. It was good to see that James seemed okay.

flying_purple_monkfish wrote:Matt nodded. "Yeah, I try to avoid arguments. They usually end with me getting punched in the face you know?"
He chuckled, trying very hard to keep things light.

Ellie laughed. "You're smarter than 90% of these fools then. They just can't back down, and it's terrible!"

Matt laughed. "right?

Moone and Starr were quiet after Luka left the room. They did not want to say anything wrong now.

Quinn was saying nothing, now licking at the remaining liquid in Vanessa' forgotten drink before reeling back and sneezing. "W-Wow..."

"oh man.. " Matt noticed the scary ultra strong alchohol and went over to Quinn. "I think.. uh.. if this is even stronger than Heny's super whiskey, we should... dispose of this safely." Was he actually being responsible? wth? Eugh.. still, if it was like the super whiskey he didn't much want to have to deal with someone with serious alchohol poisoning. Also, kids were about and that drink was glowy and glowy stuff was tempting right? He found it tempting...
"You okay Quinn?"