Upon Vestia: Chapter Twenty-Five

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Starr shrugged and looked out the window again. "I don't know. I just want things to be normal."

Hewitt chuckled. "Could all be an illusion of some sort, or perhaps a mass hallucination caused by the forces acting on you inside that tunnel. " He couldn't help but rather want to throw some probes and stuff down such a rift.

"Yeah, they could have just created an illusion to entertain us," Ethan said. "I don't think it'd be an unplanned mass hallucination, all of us are so biologically different that I don't think we'd experience the same hallucination without someone planning it that way. I mean, Armin has two brains, Sawna can turn into mist, and I don't even have blood. It's not exactly easy to make us all experience the same thing." He smiled oddly. "You would have fucking hated that wormhole. It made no sense scientifically."

"If you don't believe me I don't blame you." Marcus said, "Though you can look you in public records to know what I am saying is thetruth."

Hewitt nodded. "Thre's a great deal about this universe that makes no sense according to our current scientific understanding, but we know it has a reason and it's just a case of continue to explore to find the answer. Too many races give up and just decide a wizard did it" He looked disdainful. "lazy science that."

flying_purple_monkfish wrote:"Sounds to me like she must have somehow manipulated a wormhole." Hewitt sniffed. "Different points in time?" Mm time travel, that was ridiculous. He moved a piece.

---

Armin bowed his head. "I am glad that you have it, and that you do not dismiss our faith as foolishness. I thank you for that."

---

Amity shook his head. "I am afraid I have no frame of reference for this."

Kooshie wrote:"Starr's weirdly forgiving, for a former assassin," Ellie grumbled. "It stinks. Our crew is so nice and sweet, they never hold any grudges. We can't trust Mathew's crew though. They're all snakes. Not cute snakes, cunning snakes."

Starr smiled again at that and nodded "I like it, it's a good religion." She said gently "I know the value of forgiveness of past wrongs, maybe that helps me, though I can't forgive those two keepers yet."
~~~
Sawna nodded then shrugged "It is something you have to understand emotions to get." She agreed.
~~~
Skye chuckled at that then looked to Ellie "Maybe that's why she is forgiving, because she has to forgive her own past too?"

"I'm sure everything you say is backed by facts I can research," Vestia said. "I'm just not so sure about your motivations, and motivations are much harder to fact check."

~~
Ethan nodded. "Guess it's a lot easier to go with the first explanation that works, rather than the most complete explanation. Did many aketi research magic? Seems like they must."

~~
"Maybe so," Ellie said with a frown. She chewed on her lip unhappily. "Matthew isn't like Starr though. Slavers aren't like Starr. Starr only killed the people who deserved it, I think she said once."

"Oh certainly, a few are obsessed with explaining the unexplainable. Cypto sciences are especially popular with the younger generations, the more we interact with the savage races the more curious they become." He sounded dismissive. "I never much cared to explain magic, simply to know that it was a trick and there was a rational explanation for it somewhere. After all, there are still species out there who believe fire is magical, or the sun rising is due to some cosmic deity they plead with." He scoffed. "I prefer bigger things, theoretical physics, the nature of the universe. That's what I devoted my life to."

"Well if you have a telepath you can always scan if curious." He said with a shrug.

Ethan smiled oddly and moved a bishop. His chess strategy stank, he was trying to kill off Hewitt's pieces, but at the same time kept leaving his pieces unprotected. "Hey, understanding the weird quirks of the universe is a part of understanding the universe as a whole, right? Someone's gotta figure it out."

~~
"Marcus," Vestia said after a few moments, "We don't search people's minds here, even if there weren't ways to disguise your real intentions in a mind search." This guy was telling her so much, he sounded like an open book. That was starting to concern her. At this point she was starting to think he was either trying to emotionally manipulate her into taking him and his kid somewhere, or trying to emotionally manipulate her into a slaver trap.

He nodded, "That the first for me." He sipped a drink of water. "I know you probably don't see any form of redemption and probably going to through this away as a form of manipulation but... I am genuinely sorry for what has happen to you and your crew. There is nothing I know that I can say or do to fix what happen and I a knowledge this." He looked at the glass of water, there was a slight tremor in his hand. "I know what I did was unforgivable..." marcus was guilty, he knew he was and it could seal his fate in more ways then one. They judge him because of who he worked for, and who to blame them? He shook his head as if thinking of something.

"I suppose." Hewitt conceded, taking another of Ethan's pieces. "I prefer the bigger picture. It's grander." He chuckled.

Armin bowed his head. "Forgiveness is a difficult thing, many of us struggle to forgive. Move beyond, yes, to detach from the anger, certainly, but to actually forgive is a virtue few can truly accomplish." Yeah he hadn't really forgiven the slavers who'd taken so much from him, he no longer felt angry sure, but that didn't mean he didn't still think what they'd done was abhorrent and evil.

Kooshie wrote:"I'm sure everything you say is backed by facts I can research," Vestia said. "I'm just not so sure about your motivations, and motivations are much harder to fact check."

~~
Ethan nodded. "Guess it's a lot easier to go with the first explanation that works, rather than the most complete explanation. Did many aketi research magic? Seems like they must."

~~
"Maybe so," Ellie said with a frown. She chewed on her lip unhappily. "Matthew isn't like Starr though. Slavers aren't like Starr. Starr only killed the people who deserved it, I think she said once."

"But who is to say who deserves death?" Skye asked with a shake of her head. "Some would say we do for fighting and permanently killing the keepers we did."

flying_purple_monkfish wrote:Armin bowed his head. "Forgiveness is a difficult thing, many of us struggle to forgive. Move beyond, yes, to detach from the anger, certainly, but to actually forgive is a virtue few can truly accomplish."  Yeah he hadn't really forgiven the slavers who'd taken so much from him, he no longer felt angry sure, but that didn't mean he didn't still think what they'd done was abhorrent and evil.

Starr dipped her head then sighed and looked back up to him. "We can only do our best in such situations, letting go of the anger is enough for now, I think."

Armin nodded. "perhaps justice shall still be done."

"Perhaps" Starr agreed then smiled at him again "Should we go and check on them, tell them about the meeting?"

"We don't know much about you. We know who you've worked for, but we don't know for sure why you are the way you are, and we're not willing to go rooting in your brain to find out," Vestia said. "Maybe your motivations are good, maybe they aren't. We don't know. But you can be sure that as long as you're here, we'll treat you like a person, just like we would any sentient sapient we don't fully trust. That means we'll keep you fed and healthy, in humane accommodations, and we'll leave you somewhere reasonably safe when it's time for you to leave."
She sighed, "Sometimes people can be redeemed for their past actions, sometimes they can't. A lot of my crew have done bad things in the name of the greater good, and I'm pretty sure they're still good people at heart. But we knew them before we knew the crimes they had committed, and I guess that made them easier to trust again."

~~
Ethan glared at the piece Hewitt had taken, like it had personally offended him. He took one of Hewitt's pieces in retaliation, which left his own queen vulnerable to capture. He really was bad at this game.
"The big picture is that great, huh?"

~~
"Well the keepers attacked us first, and the slavers attacked us first, so I think it's pretty clear who deserves death. They do." Ellie nodded sagely.

"A pretty cover on a book is more likely to be bought then a tattered and torn one." Marcus said, softly chuckling, "Frankly I would be scared if you welcomed me in open arms, I would be questioning where the knife was."

Sawna chuckled softly "I'm trying to see Starr's perspective, how she can forgive them for the evil done to us. Maybe she looked in his mind or something, I don't know. I don't see how she could forgive them." Yeah, she wasn't happy with the situation either, they had hurt her and Moone

Armin nodded. "if you believe that is the right course then I will, of course, follow my friend."

---

Hewitt smiled and took the queen casually. "Why fixate on the little things, when you can see everything?"

Starr hesitated at that, looking to her egg "I'm not certain of the right course anymore, but he did no harm to us himself and his child is innocent of any involvement with us at all." She paused then looked back to Armin "Matthew wanted to change, he wanted out and I gave him people to contact to help that course. He was trying to become better." It sounded like she was wanting to convince herself now.

Vestia laughed. "Very true. I'm not sure what sort of people wouldn't be at least a little bit suspicious here."

~~
Ellie nodded to Skye. "Yeah, I guess she's nuts or knows something we don't. Glad you don't totally agree with her." She frowned, "You don't like them being here?"

~~
"Because the big picture is usually out of your control. The little things are what you can understand and change," Ethan said. "Or the medium sized things," he amended, thinking of his history books.
He glared at his dead queen.

Armin bowed his head. "It is a shame he never got that chance." He patted Starr's shoulder. "You are wise my friend, of that I am in no doubt. I believe and support your judgement."

---

Hewitt chuckled. "Ah now I never said anything about change, just understanding. Looking out into the stars and seeing all those reactions and interactions, it's quite beautiful really."

"Trust is hard to earn, and rightfully so." He shrugged, putting the glass down. "Once bitten twice shy is the terran saying I say."

Skye shook her head. "No, I don't, but they are here until we can drop them off."

~~~
Starr smiled and patted his hand on her shoulder. "I hope I can live up to your faith in me" She said before getting up and getting the egg in the carrier. She didn't like leaving it behind often.

Armin bowed his head. "Believe in yourself my friend, you are more capable than you give yourself credit for."

Starr smiled and looked to Armin again "Thank you, my friend."