THE AMAZING BASE.

[agogemod]

WHO? Everybody!
WHAT? Welcome home, nerds.
WHEN? Outside time and space, in the aether between dimensions.
ANYTHING ELSE? There is also a fish. Please warn in subject lines for anything beyond physical violence and move to a personal journal if things go beyond PG-13.

MYSTERY FISH;

question the mystery fish

DEPARTING GALLIPOLI

The order comes the day after the Marie Antoinette sets sail:

PACK UP AND GET READY TO MOVE OUT. WE'VE DONE ALL WE CAN HERE.

DEPLOYMENT: BASE.

WE NEED TO RESTOCK. BE PREPARED FOR MORE TRANSFERS ON ARRIVAL.

STAY SAFE. TIME-STEP EXPECTED TO BEGIN WITHIN THE HOUR.

FOR THOSE OF YOU NEW TO COST: FIND A SECLUDED SPOT AND TRY NOT TO EAT ANYTHING BEFORE THE JUMP.

The Time-Step

The transfer begins like a vibrating heat on the collar bone, just a hum of sensation.

But the vibration spreads. Veteran COST soldiers often refer to this phenomenon as "the buzz". The feeling builds, not unlike standing near a great engine or the wind-rattled branches of a massive tree. There is a long moment of motion sickness and you can't be sure if the world is shaking you from the inside out or the outside in. It may be better to close your eyes against the growing nausea, as the world blurs out of focus.

A star shines in the distance. You may hear the faint rustling of leaves. Some swear they hear voices in this moment, indistinct words echoing off nothingness. Others say they feel a touch of the divine, that the eyes of the eternal look down upon you. Ancient bones rattle just out of earshot, cold and brittle and nothing more than the suggestion of sound. Or maybe it's only an illusion, brought on by the powerful technology grafted into your skin.

One thing is for sure: One moment you are here and the next you are not.

The shift takes you from whatever solitude you could find aboard the Marie Antoinette to the temperature-regulated hallway of what looks like a very poorly put together space station. Droids rush up and down the long hallway, fixing broken bits of machinery or just chattering with each other. A few crows sit on high ledges, looking down and watching. Someone mutters something about a centaur around the corner.

And you might just notice, provided you were in Gallipoli long enough to acquire stowaways, that the parasites lurking on your skin are mercifully gone.

For new arrivals who didn't experience Gallipoli: You, too, will appear in this long hallway, filled with droids and crows and humans (still filthy and clad in ANZAC uniforms, carrying battered equipment from the first World War). And you'll be wearing the minimal COST-issued athletic underwear and holding whatever one item you were allowed to bring. Surprise!

READ THE BASE INFOPAGE.

home away from home

Those who have been to BASE before may find a strangeness to it all: BASE seems...still. The windows show a verdant world instead of the usual aether (though with the typical paranoia), and the halls are bereft of all but a few crows. A man stands at the end of the long hallway you arrived in, waiting for you to get your bearings before he speaks.

Except, you know, he's not a man. He's a centaur.

"It's been barely a week since you left, by my reckoning. But for you, I'm sure, it's been much longer. Still, much has changed. You may have noticed we are...becalmed. This is due, it seems, to an error in our ways. We kept something that does not belong to us, several wild creatures that are meant to be free. They seem to have psychically called out to their home, and their home responded; we are now somewhat stranded.

"But let me explain—the Aether is the nexus between worlds and times, but it is not a dead thing. Creatures live in it. We have crashed onto the back of one such creature, a mighty beast, as large as a small country and entirely undiscovered. We have found why the creature has intercepted us: we have accidentally taken captive some of its children. Shapers, the wild creatures I mentioned, it seems they form a symbiotic bond with the creature, and live happily within its stomach."

He frowns, considering this.

"Shapers, I should mention, are creatures that briefly infested our fair BASE. The issue was dealt with, though we kept some for experimentation. The coelacanth took issue with this, it seems. It can speak, of course; we are stranded very near its head, and if you wish to ask it a question, I implore you to do so. The creature is older than creation—older than me—and only speaks once to any creature it encounters. It's said its wisdom brings kings to their knees."

His eyes crinkle in humor.

"My name is Chiron and I am the caretaker of this place, for those of you whom I have not had the pleasure of meeting. More importantly, I am a trainer and a teacher of some experience; if you wish training or schooling of any sort, do summon me. I will be happy to assist."

He's easy to contact, often found in the library, the training area, his capsule, or elsewhere in the station, attempting to fix what he understands and arguing with crows.

"We intended to spend this time exploring, for this is a rare opportunity to discover more of an entirely uncharted world. I hasten you to see if anything on the coelacanth can be of use, but be careful. Take only what you need, not what you may want. I intend to learn my lessons well; these creatures are not pets. Takes food, water, and any materials of use to us for our survival and perseverance, but no more. We task you with this: explore the coelacanth, and see what of it can be understood. Bring us back samples, but do try to interrupt the natural habitat as little as possible. We are guests here."

He bows and the action shows a slight limp in one of his back legs.

"I would join you, but I am far too old for such activities. Still, do pepper me with any questions you should encounter. I am always available on the network, or in person, within this hulking mass we call home."

And then he leaves you to find your capsules and rest.

CAPSULE ASSIGNMENTS

Once you've found your room and settled in—perhaps taken a shower, collected clothes, and eaten—a droid will approach you with camping equipment and give you a brief explanation of how to access and use the database. It's time to get your gear and go.

Of course, you can decline. You can stay and tend to the fort, maybe try and clean up this patchwork jumble of metal and machinery. But seeing the sights on the back of a giant fish flying through non-space? Who can say no to that?


the undiscovered country.

BASE's airlocks open into a lush valley, vibrant with color and rustling with life that has thrived on the coelacanth's back for millennia. It's a striking shift from the rot and gunfire of Gallipoli, unmarked by shrapnel, bombshells, and never-fresh air.

No, the air here is clean in a way that can leave you breathless, untouched by pollutants and stirred into a gentle breeze. It's a marked departure for anyone used to a more modern Earth or rough equivalent; letting the air sit on your tongue leaves a crisp, unsullied taste behind. And the whole forest feels alive, in a way that reminds you of how small you really are.

A white crow perches in a tree near BASE's exit, too high up to properly engage but a stark contrast to the bright leaves around her. She merely watches recruits come and go with a shrewd eye, feathers fluffed against the light chill. There are other crows scattered throughout the wilderness, some easier to find than others as they flit through the trees, sit on camping equipment, or hitch rides on the hoverbikes.

Besides those brief flashes of black feathers, however, you're left unsupervised.

Try not to fuck up anything too badly.

EXPLORE:INFOPAGE|DATABASE
talk to a fish | destruction report

NAV. NETWORK LOGS OOC MEMES PLURK

Comments

camping 2

[mylawn]

[76 is more than happy to make several forays out into the wilderness. After all the gloom and death of Gallipoli, he welcomes the outdoors, even if it's alien in nature--and it's lucky, in a way, because he doesn't think he could stand the confines of BASE after being in the trenches for so long. Despite the inherent dangers and the fact that they're more-or-less stuck, this is as close to unfiltered nature as he's been in a while, and likely will get, depending on where they go next. It makes him think about a time before the Crisis, something imagined and idyllic that wasn't really all that idyllic, but at this point was lived by someone else either way.

Suffice to say he's not so bad at camping--and he doesn't mind Ashitaka either. The kid is quiet and thoughtful and seems to know what he's doing when it comes to roughing it. 76 doesn't ask questions about Yakul beyond basic introductions, and finds them both refreshingly independent. He'll go off on his own for a time, regroup with them later, compare notes. He doesn't want to infringe when they camp for the night, content to set up within shouting distance, but otherwise enjoying the solitude.

He will, however, help with supplies, and he's depositing an armful of firewood nearby when he hears Ashitaka express something of a private sentiment. 76 doesn't exactly have a good answer.]

Might be nice.

[He can admit that. There's something refreshing about roughing it in a place like this, but 76 knows he can't stay still for too long.]

Might get bored.

[lonelywar]

[In the grand scheme of things it was most likely bad luck that they had been brought here, at least given COST's goal, but through Ashitaka's personal lens, he clings to it as a blessing. Returning to the monochromatic confines of BASE for several weeks before their next deployment would not have done much of anything to help him heal from what he had experienced in Lone Pine - and the Regency's base, after his capture. He had had enough of monochromatic prisons for as long as he possibly could manage, which was why the number of nights he had actually spent on BASE could be counted on one hand. He was far happier losing himself in the wilderness that lived atop the coelacanth's back, and though it was nothing like home (like Earth), somehow it was far more like home than any other place they had visited so far.

Ashitaka is used to being self-sufficient in his travels. He has had his occasional traveling companions, of course, but for the most part he tends to take care of himself and his own. Traveling with 76, then, felt very simple and easy to him. The older man clearly could take care of himself as well, though they made sure to keep occasional contact so no one fell into danger. With each expedition into the unknown they returned with multiple notes and samples from all sorts of plants and creatures which made this strange place their home. Most of them seemed peaceful, though there were many Ashitaka had decided to give wide berth, obeying an instinct both he and Yakul seemed to share.

Today had been a largely uneventful one, one befitting of settling down to the peaceful scene of the eternal twilight on the back of the giant creature. He catches the sound of the firewood being deposited and looks over his shoulder to where the soldier stands nearby.

He knows that there's truth to what he says. As much as this place might be a nice reprieve from what they must do, it was also completely separate from what they knew. No other people, no hint of civilization. It would get boring. That, or they would eventually yearn for what was more familiar to them. Even Ashitaka thinks he might begin to grow homesick for his real home, once the novelty of these woods wore off.]

...Yes. I suppose you are right. This place might be preferable to a battlefield, but it is not the place we are meant to be.

[Aware of the paltry state of the fire, he stands and goes over to where 76 had dropped off the firewood, stooping over to pick up a few pieces. He regards his traveling companion levelly.]

You may join me for a while, if you wish.

[mylawn]

[It's a nice reprieve, all things considered, but 76 knows how he gets when there isn't much to do. Exploring and taking samples is all well and good, but he doesn't like to be idle for too long. He'll enjoy the untamed wilderness of the Coelacanth for as long as they're here, but eventually he'll need to occupy himself with more than this.

For now, it's enough, even though 76 knows that eventually, he'll be drawn back to war in one way or another. He simply doesn't know how to function otherwise.

That, however, is a contemplation that he's more than happy to bury, putting his mind on anything else. Busying himself with the ordinary chores of stoking a fire and making camp helps, and he nods affirmatively when Ashitaka invites him into the space.]

It's a nice change, at least.

[Though he imagines anything would be a nice change from Gallipoli. He doesn't have to ask if Ashitaka agrees, because of course he does.]

We might as well enjoy it while we can.

[lonelywar]

[Surely there are many among them similar to 76, who would not find much to keep themselves sufficiently engaged while exploring on the back of the coelacanth. There were some like Ashitaka who would find perfect contentedness in this, but... even he would grow restless eventually. Not for something more; he did not yearn for the conflict and war they left behind. What would eventually worry him was everything that he had been taken from back home, of the war of men and gods, of San and Eboshi and how everything seemed to be on the cusp of breaking. But it's not within his ability to return, and COST doesn't seem interested in doing so, not when he was being such a sufficient soldier. So it would be onto the next mission, all with the hope of going home at some point.

For now, he's happy in this moment, in restructuring the dying fire into something that would last for a few more hours at the very least, in welcoming the older soldier to join him. He smiles at him, pleased for the company. The older man bristles, he finds, not bad company but sometimes a bit standoffish. He feels he has inklings of understanding for why that is, but he leaves them be.]

I am very pleased for it, after what we have left behind.

[Mud, smoke, ash, gunpowder, trenches torn into the earth like gouges through flesh. He would do almost anything to forget everything that had happened, if that wouldn't be disingenuous to who they had lost, all that they had experienced.]

They will send us on into another war in time. This is guaranteed. So, yes, I think that it is good for all of us to do what we can to appreciate time for fresh air, for peace.

[The fire is crackling and healthy again, and Ashitaka settles next to Yakul once more. The elk has lifted his head, studying 76. It's not their first meeting, of course, but it's his type of greeting.]

Is a place and situation like this stranger to you? In comparison to where we have just come from?

[mylawn]

[76 doesn’t really hold much hope when it comes to getting home. With time travel in the mix, he imagines it’s entirely possible to spend years as part of COST while only weeks pass in the aether. He sort of wonders what that’s doing to him, physically, but then decides he’d rather not think about it. Imagining an endless conscription is intimidating enough, even for someone built to do this kind of thing. The worst part is that he’d stay here indefinitely if it meant some of these kids got to go home, but that doesn’t seem to be in the cards, either.

One way or another, he imagines the truth will come out. For now, he should enjoy this while he can, even if it’s difficult to take his mind off the greater reality of their situation.]

I used to spend a lot of time outdoors.

[Before the Crisis—before Overwatch. It all seems very far away, like a life lived by someone else. As such, he feels the need to clarify his statement.]

When I was a kid. Can't say it was on an alien creature, though.

[lonelywar]

[Ashitaka would hope such a thing would be impossible. Wouldn't that be, in a way, defeating COST's own purpose? To remove someone indefinitely from their place in time, or even to return them differently-aged or differently-minded from years of fighting elsewhere, surely that would cause ripples throughout the impact of their overall life that could imperil the equilibrium they sought to maintain? Ashitaka's own grasp on this was still tenuous, as a young man who still struggled to grasp the full scope of his own conflict back home, but he would personally disagree to such a nihilistic outlook on their potential return.

Ashitaka has to remind himself that such a division exists, later in the history of Earth. In his own time, there wasn't much of anyone who did not spend a lot of time outdoors. Not unless you were high nobility, perhaps, but he had never experienced such a person.]

I think being on the back of an ancient creature is new to all of us, yes.

[This is what passes for a joke, with him.]

It is nostalgic, then?

[He wonders if war had robbed him of the wonder of the limitless outdoors. But, then again, the whole conception was different for him — something locked off, separate, even though it was, in essence, the entire world they stood upon, wherever they were.]

[mylawn]

Something like that.

[It reminds him of camping and fishing trips and the first day of deer season--all things he hasn't done since he was a teenager. Sure, he had to rough it during the Crisis but under threat of death it wasn't exactly the same thing. This isn't exactly the same thing either, but it's just vaguely similar enough for him to take it. It's the reprieve after Gallipoli that makes him feel this way, he thinks.

76 realizes that he's managed to start talking about himself, which is usually the last thing he wants to do.]

I try not to get sentimental.

[But of course he is anyway. There's not much else left.]

[lonelywar]

[Ashitaka has certainly gotten that sense from the man over the weeks and months, that he wrapped himself up in the ideal of what he was now, very rarely sharing with anyone what lie beneath that thin veil. It's not really his intention to pry; he is curious, but he knows as well or perhaps slightly better than most that it is difficult to speak of certain personal matters to others. For him, it was because the wound was fresh, the guilt still slowly settling in to a phantom pain that would be recorded in the body for the rest of its life. He has to assume for the soldier that it was because such matters had settled in long ago, like a sediment at the bottom of a pond, and disturbing them would only muddy the waters for an uncomfortably long period of time.

Ashitaka nods, his mien understanding.

After a moment's thought:] It is not a weakness.

[It's not as though he feels as though he's teaching him anything, or even sharing something he hasn't either thought of before or heard elsewhere. But it's a sentiment which suddenly beset itself upon him.] You have fought in many wars. [It's not really a question; it's obvious enough.] It is important to remember what exists beyond them, whether you can return to it or not.

[It's more difficult to remember and to keep this mind, often to the point of it being painful, but Ashitaka hasn't allowed himself to compartmentalize. What is easier is often more dangerous in the long run, he believes; you ran the risk of missing the whole picture, allowing yourself to make choices you might otherwise have second-guessed.]

[mylawn]

No, I know it's not.

[It would be very easy for him to rid himself of the rest of his emotional attachments--it might hurt less, in the end, given where the path he's walking inevitably leaves. In some situations he wonders if it might be advantageous to do that, until he remembers what he's fighting for in the first place.

Despite his own selfish impulses, on some level all he really wants is to do right by his people. Sentimentality, after all, is what keeps him human. Ana helps with that, but Ana isn't here, which means that the only thing he really has to hang on to is the memory of better times.

But he thinks that's enough about him--it's all a little uncomfortable to think about, to say nothing of someone pinpointing him like this.]

It's good advice. You should keep it in mind, yourself.

[In many ways, 76 knows it's too late for him. He'll never be able to escape the many wars he's fought, or the ones he's still fighting. He doubts the fighting will ever be over, and doesn't know what he'll do with himself when all is said and done. The least he can do is make sure someone much younger doesn't end up like him.]

[lonelywar]

[Surely the soldier has heard this advice before, and perhaps given it. But Ashitaka thinks there is no harm in reminders and reinforcement, especially when their situation was rather unique, even when compared to the wars they had seen. Theirs was a conflict that encompassed all the others, making something so terrible as the theater of mingling cruelty and nonchalance in Gallipoli just seem like another piece to the puzzle.

The psychological scars from it were still fresh to him, though. With both of these things in mind, Ashitaka is almost glad for that; he would hate for such terrible things to become rote and routine.

He is almost glad. But he is not.

The smile that he gives 76 is a little wan, a little forced. It doesn't even last throughout his reply.] Sometimes following one's own advice is the most difficult thing of all. [He's silent for a beat, and then he nods.] But you are right.

[The silence reasserts itself for a few long moments, filled only with the subdued crackling of what remained of the fire, the wind, the distant sounds of running water, the cries of animals. It's in the silence of moments like this that the darker of his thoughts dredge themselves back up, like paradoxical silt that rises from the bottom of a riverbank when all is still.]

If I might ask your opinion, [he eventually says, breaking that silence,] what do you think we are in the eyes of the Regency? Merely enemy soldiers?

[He's always been terrible with segues. Perhaps context will become apparent soon.]

[mylawn]

[That gets a laugh out of 76, because doesn't he know it. He's dispensed a lot of advice over the years, some legitimate, some simply by nature of his experience. He's always had trouble following it himself, even if he knows it's the most sensible thing to do. It's all he offers before he falls into the silence, though he doesn't find it particularly uncomfortable.

It's good, sometimes, to be contemplative.

The mention of the Regency brings him back to reality, if only a little, the small downturn of the corners of his mouth making his thoughts evident.]

I mean, they never miss an opportunity to tell us we're ingrates.

[Whether or not they actually are is irrelevant.]

Xici called me a backwater hick, more or less.

[lonelywar]

[Idealistic advice was always easy to dispense; it existed only in the abstract then, as something to be put upon a pedestal and respected and appreciated. To do such a thing was far more arduous - you had to actually create what was commendable enough to be revered in such a way, and it was difficult work. Ashitaka was a dutiful young man, and he would not complain at such a task, but sometimes he finds himself slacking where once he might have pursued with dogged tenacity. Not having the looming threat of the curse claiming his life or the responsibility of his people directly draped over his shoulders might do something like that. He's still trying to find the piece of COST's mission that he can use to give him proper motivation.

But Ashitaka is appreciative of a comfortable silence as well, so he is happy to share one with the old soldier. He almost feels sad to have broken it and replaced it with such a grave subject, but certain things would only continue to cause pain if they were not more carefully examined and shared.

He is quiet at the answer. His own confrontation with Kebechet had been very different, but perhaps there were undertones of that to their conversation. The Regency agent had always had an air of superiority, though someone with the upper-hand in both situation and knowledge would come by that naturally.

Assuming the translator at least attempts to change that into something he could understand, he smiles ever-so-faintly.] She had few pleasant things to say about me, as well. ["Fool" was one he remembers. "Pugnate," another, though this one he has less understanding of.

Strange, that they were some of the only people who would carry on the memory of her.

Ashitaka seems to sift for words before he continues.]

I believe we are something else to them. [He doesn't claim to know much about the intricacies of warfare or prisoners or torture, but the more he thinks on what he experienced, the odder it seems.] Something that can be used. Something which would be a waste, simply to destroy.

[mylawn]

Pugnate, right?

[76 has a small chuckle to himself about that—the Regency seems particularly fond of that one. Still, Ashitaka makes a salient point. It would have been easy to kill the captured recruits, but instead they dragged out the hostage situation, perhaps to extract information, perhaps to bait the rest of their cell to stage a rescue. He finds himself understanding Grothia a little better. She could look the other way if someone launched a rescue operation, but she wouldn’t mobilize the whole cell herself. The amount of loss would be more than they could bear, given their numbers and resources.

That still begs to question, however, what the Regency even aims to do with them, given the opportunity.]

I’m sure we’d be pretty useful if they scrambled our brains enough.

[That said, turning under-equipped, under-trained soldiers against each other is a legitimate strategy in itself. There’s something to be said for psychological warfare.]

Or maybe they’re trying not to look like hypocrites. Can’t be for universal peace if your first order of business is to kill people.

[lonelywar]

[Ah, so he hadn't been the only one.

There's a faint, sad smile on Ashitaka's face as he nods.] Yes. That was it.

[He's been thinking about this almost constantly since he'd been captured, if not in the forefront of his mind then tangled up somewhere in his subconscious. Since he had seen Xici die, torn apart on a cellular level as she simply ceased to be in the stream of time, he had taken it as a sobering message of what they all faced if they failed. Upon his meeting with Kebechet, seeing that they knew everything about him and where he was from (and knew more about what he was going to do with his life than even he did), he had realized he'd already failed without noticing it. If they knew him, they could destroy him; it was as simple as that.

But they didn't. Why?

76 brings up good points, more fleshed-out versions of fragments that Ashitaka had considered himself, over these last few days.]

They still send people against us, however. Soldiers which seem more than willing to kill. [They'd faced off against them in Gallipoli, both while in Lone Pine and when escaping from it. Of course, one of those agents had captured Ashitaka rather than killing him, but perhaps their orders had changed.] They try to create eternal peace by intervening in wars. In this, they must compromise something.

[He is silent for a moment longer, taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling.]

I... [He reconsiders how to approach this.] We have known that, if they discovered our identities, they could erase us as they did Xici. But Kebechet showed me that they already knew who I was. Not only that, but everything I had already done - everything that I would do. [He frowns, his brow knitting together in consternation.] I... asked if it meant the end of me, but Kebechet said that to erase a single person was something they were forbidden to do.

[He feeds another piece of firewood to the fire.] I caution myself in believing what I was told, but they said it was the Windhoek Accord that stopped this. I... have heard that name before. Xici mentioned it, though she did not say what it was.

[Perhaps Ashitaka should have asked more.]

[mylawn]

[These are all things that 76 has been pouring over since arriving here. He knows it’s in the Regency’s interest to lie to them and sow dissent, but if they really are bound to something that prevents them from killing ancestors or even fellow time travelers, it raises some uncomfortable possibilities about Xici.

76 still isn’t sure who’s telling the truth. All he can do is keep in mind that the Regency will go to any lengths to secure their peace, even if it makes them hypocrites.]

Grothia told me about the first time the Regency wiped out a bloodline to secure power. It was so devastating that they instituted the rule that they’d never do it again.

[An illusion of benevolence, maybe. An empty promise made emptier by the knowledge of what happened and the possibility the Regency could choose to break it at any time with no consequence.]

I don’t think they care about holding up that end of the bargain, but if they were telling the truth, maybe COST killed Xici.

[lonelywar]

[It is a peculiar puzzle.

Xici had known that she would die, but the manner in which she had been executed had been a shock, even to her. Ashitaka has to assume she expected that COST would execute her as an enemy agent after they had extracted whatever information they could from her. If it was true that COST had the ability to erase her as she had been, why would she have been so shocked and betrayed? It would have been something she would be expecting.

This is the primary reason Ashitaka is not convinced by Kebechet's defensive maneuvering. He had seen Xici's deep conviction to the Regency (or the Empire, as she called it), and the level of betray she had exhibited could only come from the same place.

So, what was it? Had Kebechet lied, or were they simply not privy to the level that decision to kill Xici had been made on?

There's a spark to the young man's eyes as Soldier continues.]

That must be it! The Windhoek Accord.

[Interfering with the timeline and how things had previously been established to happen was very dangerous. It was why they made such a dreadful mistake in Paris, allowing the queen to escape. It was something Ashitaka had taken it upon himself never to do again, even if it must call him to do something he would prefer not. The ripples of these actions extended far past their immediate understanding.]

I believe it is more that they are willing to overlook their own rules, if they believe enough that it is necessary. [He had certainly gotten that sort of impression from Kebechet himself.]

If COST has the ability, Xici's reaction seems strange to me. She expected to die, presumably at COST's hand. But she was so shocked, saying that it was a death meant for traitors. [He pauses, frowning, considerate.] I do believe that she was loyal, upon speaking to her. So it would have had to have been the Regency's hand instead.

[mylawn]

She didn't tell me the name, but it sounds like it.

[He imagines, as with most things, that the truth is somewhere in the middle. They have no reason to believe Kebechet, but without all of the puzzle pieces, it's difficult to deduce what's actually happening. 76 does know, however, that tyrannical regimes are often hypocrites of the highest order, and that's why he thinks Ashitaka is correct in his assessment.

Even Kebechet's ignorance of the situation can be explained by a few different factors, not the least of which is the Regency's purported tendency to scramble the brains of their agents.

After a moment of consideration, he speaks again, something of a sigh in his voice.]

I think you're probably right.

[lonelywar]

[They had each held in their hands parts and pieces of this mystery, and now they were slightly closer to understanding the truth of it - or, at least, the truth in the eyes of the Regency (or the Empire, as Xici had been fervent in insisting it should be called).

But even with an idea of this rule that the Regency had made for itself, it doesn't do much good for them. It's possible that the Regency circumvents their own rule when they find that the need is great enough - or when it simply best suits them or makes things easiest. He isn't sure. Ashitaka is not to a point of questioning Xici's death past what he has already considered, but it certainly makes him wonder if things are more complicated than they had been told.

Because controlling the information given to a people is one of the easiest ways to control them.

If is, of course, best for them if this course of reasoning is correct.]

To doubt COST too much at this point would most likely be more dangerous than anything else. [A brief pause.] And is, most likely, what the Regency wishes.

[mylawn]

[76 can’t help but doubt COST—after having spent so long devoted to a cause that ultimately ate him alive, he finds it serves him well to be paranoid. He also, in many ways, doesn’t know how else to be. Cynicism has kept him alive now that Overwatch is gone, and though it might not be healthy, it’s certainly worked in his favor.

The idealistic part of him wants to trust COST. The man that’s been through everything he has finds it a little difficult.]

Oh, I’m sure that’s what the Regency wants.

[There’s no doubt that they want to capitalize on the ragtag nature of COST to blow it all up from the inside.]

It’s a legitimate strategy.

[lonelywar]

[Typically, Ashitaka would be wary as well; all that he has seen of armies is destruction of property and devastation of its inhabitants. But how much choice did they have? They had no power in this. They didn't even have the ability to desert, if they were so inclined. COST controlled their positioning in space-time, and therefore it controlled them.

To trust them enough to at the very least tune out the Regency's claims felt like a method of self-preservation to him.]

In the end we are limited by our lack of an ability to control where it is we go and what we do. As long as this is true, it seems to me sound to trust COST until they give us a reason to cease doing so.

[There is a brief pause, one filled with the crackling of the fire. Ashitaka soon looks up to 76 with a slightly apologetic smile on his face.]

But it has gotten late, and I fear I have kept you. Perhaps we should rest so we might continue onward in the morning.

[Or whatever went for "morning" out here, where time didn't really seem to mean much of anything.]

[mylawn]

I agree.

[COST, so far, has been about preserving the past to save the universe from tyranny in the future. That’s a cause 76 can get behind, and as long as he isn’t asked to do anything he finds reprehensible, it’s a cause he can stick with. The Regency, conversely, has already used torture on their number, and 76 isn’t exactly interested in what they have to say when they seem to have a penchant for getting into the heads of their soldiers, quite literally.

He has no guarantee that COST hasn’t crossed that line, but until he knows for sure (and he might not ever know for sure), they seem to be the team to side with, if the Regency is the alternative.

76 considers Ashitaka for a moment before nodding. He’s not about to say that his sleep is fitful and difficult to come by at best, so he spins it a different way.]

You get some rest. I’ll take first watch.