notabluesbro | 18th Confession [Voice/Action]

[Voice]

Looks like we're being led around by a rope, like usual. But you gotta' wonder—what good will it do to rile us all up into wanting to fight, into learning how to fight? Or have they forgotten that most of Luceti wants them either dead, or drinking through a straw? Either way, it's pretty incredible that they can't hold back these enemies, and yet we can kill them on the battlefield. Us, people who are trapped here, who can't even fight a gang of robots from dragging us off.

It's all topsy-turvy, isn't it?

[And while he's here... well, might as well take his mind off things for a little while to address a certain grumpy-faced child...]

[[Filtered to 'Katie' // 70% Unhackable]]

Hey, kid—can I talk to you, or would you rather just glare at me for a minute?

[Said without a trace of malice, of course, because Wolfwood has a hard time throwing that around kids; actually, he's far too curious about how she did it, than the fact that she tossed him for no real known reason toward what could've been his ~~second~~ death.]

[Action]

[All that said and done, he's got practicing to do. He's been hoarding up on his ammo, but knowing they'll supply him with more is a relief; he goes to the battle dome and proceeds to shoot apart whatever the simulation throws at him: guys with angel wings? Their weak points are those. Those big-ass things, right there. And they're significantly easy to shoot down when you just go for one of them. But then, he also practices on people he's used to shooting: guys with guns.

Swivel cross. Block bullets. Fire back from behind Punisher. It's all ingrained into his mind as clear as anything else he's ever learned. Except where his shots normally tear through vital organs, a lot of his targets instead are hit where they couldn't use their guns anymore—arms, and then legs, all meticulous. Some are killed. He notes it, acknowledges it, and makes no effort to correct himself for it.

When he walks out of the battle dome, his cross is significantly lighter. He'll take the time to drop by the Good Spirits and drink equally light, draw out a cigarette and light it, wait until the light outside's gone and find himself too awake to return home just yet. So he sits in the forest against a rock, arms folded while he barks sharply to his empty left-hand side:]

Are you going to teach me more or not?

[He returns home with a few little burns here and there, as expected. But at least he can create bigger blasts of fire. It's more than he was hoping for. Somewhere in this day, he fancies he'll have to talk to Vash about what's to come.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Because it's an equal opportunity for them.

[This answer likely would've made more sense in context if he'd said it on the journals, instead of from where he sits on a rooftop in the square, but pssh. Details.]

[Wolfwood pauses midstep, and then turns his chin just slightly to find the source of the noise. Ah, Shikamaru, was it? His mind is a little overwhelmed by questions and thoughts, so he doesn't quite make the connection yet. And then then, he probably should make sure—]

Pardon?

Your question on the journals. [He closes said book, tucking it into his flak jacket.] It's because it works to both of their advantages.

[He turns his body around now to face the building, arm poised to hold the cross in arm. His voice is that of curiosity:]

You don't say...

Care to elaborate on those advantages?

The first is the obvious one. We fight some of their battles for them, and they're not forced to spread out as many of their resources.

Meanwhile, half their organization is scared shitless of us for the same thing you pointed out. They know most of this village wouldn't mind taking a shot at them someday, so they do what they can to make sure they never have the chance. Putting us up against an enemy that's determined to wipe us out permanently solves that problem for them.

... Huh, that's a good point. But even they have to realize something like that can't last forever—once the battles are over, we're right back to loathing their guts, eh?

I'm sure they've considered it. From their vantage point, I imagine they think that the fewer of us there are to deal with makes it worth it.

Consider what they want, it'll only come back to bite them in the ass, in the end.

... But I'll admit, they're doing a damn good job at keeping us under their thumb at the present.

And have been for the last three years, from what I understand. It's easier to do with the way people come in and out of this place.

Mmmn. Also something they're allegedly not able to control.

But there's really no way to figure them out without one of them coming right out and telling the truth, right?

Not unless they're sloppy about it. If they screw up again like they did last Halloween, it's going to be hard to miss. I'm not sure if that works in or against our favor, though.

Considering what a wreck everyone was during Halloween? I'm not sure, either.

But the question remains... will any of this matter in terms of getting home? Do they really have no control over our coming here, or are they the masterminds behind plucking us out of our worlds?

I think I may have to lean towards the former with that one. If they had that much control, you'd think they'd just send us back and be done with it. Less risk to them.

Hard to believe it's really that random though, when most of us seem to personally know anyone that shows up from our world. [Not to mention that over half the population are powerhouses.]

Yeah. There are five people from my world all together. I can't honestly believe it's coincidence like that, when we all not only know each other, but are deeply connected in ways I'd rather not go into.

Out of so many people, why us five? Why the ones who know each other?

Only reasoning I can come up with for it is that it gives them some leverage against us. The well-being of the people we care about keeps some of these people in check. Bringing in enemies gives us something else to focus on instead of them.

But if that's what they're doing, it's not very smart. They'd have a better thumb over our heads if they kept us feeling more isolated.

Even the longest living geniuses out there make stupid choices when faced with their own over-confidence. Don't you think? It's only a matter of time before they screw up enough to give us some better answers about why we're here and how we get out.

Until that day, all we can do is get yanked around on a chain until we see our chance to break it off.

18th Confession [Voice/Action]

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