[He lets her say it all, sits down with his back to the wall, and not for the first time, debates smoking. Again.]
You're right about timelines. You're wrong that I think it's linear. It's infinite.
I'm not taking anything anyone says as anything other than their words until I cross reference it. And I have done so.
I know where I'm speculating, and where I'm not. You sound like Darcy. She nearly wanted to slit my throat when I tried to posit how to defeat him. It's not in the book. I tried to explain... [Looks up at the Promenade ceiling that can't be seen. He wonders which part he fell from when he "died." Almost died. Got possessed. Was it here? Elsewhere?] Do you have rock, paper, scissors in your sector? Paper beats rock, rock beats scissors, scissors beats paper.
Most of the world is scissors. 75%. Then 20% is paper. Only 5% is rock. So scissor fighter get used to tying, used to having to think of other ways to fight after a tie. And they think paper is the weakest. They think rock is the strongest, but it's just that rock is able to defeat scissors. Against paper, the ones most people think is weakest, they can't do anything. Untouchables. People like Oichi. Who can fight in a different way. This is a metaphor, don't take it too literally.
I told Skulduggery if I get through all the library, romance will be last.
I trust you, Teyrey. I don't trust Skulduggery. I don't know him. I don't have a contract with him. We're not friends. I'll drink with him, I'll do karaoke with him, but I don't know how he thinks, or why. I only know what I know, no more. I told him this weakness of mine, because if I simply hid it because I was scared, I would hate myself for being so weak and frail.
Darcy told me she was going to hug the captain, and he threatened to skin her alive and make her bones dance on stage, and use them as a puppet to give Fio nightmares. And that is about what I'd do. Actually he didn't say he'd use her bones on stage, that is what I'd have done. Or wanted to. To warn everyone else to stay the fuck away from me. [Cracks his neck.] It's good I had that fight, because days later, Crichton hugged me. Americans, right? But I love him. He is my friend. This is what I mean.
I do no mean that -- [He closes his eyes, thinking harder.] That the captain could be softened, or that we have the same weaknesses, but rather, there is a way to fight him, but you must use paper, not scissors. Rather than try to cut him, don't. Be uncrushable as paper is to rock. Untouchable. I cannot handle Oichi. That is why I sent her away. Paper to my rock. Metaphorically.
As I said, I do not know what Skulduggery is thinking. But I know he is fighting for your freedom. Maybe I don't understand that. Maybe I misinterpreted it, because that day we met, I was still new, and I was thinking of myself, of what I did in my own time, and certainly, everyone talking about the Captain's sadism, and his issues pretending to be normal -- [A bitter laugh and a handwave.] Even before that, a long time before, I spoke with others, about why they said it was torture, what things were being done, the rest. Even so. Before speaking with Skulduggery, I thought I just want people to be happier. To not be miserable. It was him who made me narrow it back to freedom, like the castes.
If he didn't want that, wouldn't it be easier to try to convince me to convince the others to just be at odds? To fight one another? Me, who can barely get along with people I like! Skulduggery doesn't know my history, and didn't talk to the Captain about me. He died in Ireland when I was still unifying Japan, and he wasn't a nobleman. So it is not like he could have thought, "Aha, I better trick this openly admitted sadist, because his whole life is about unifying people even in hell, so it would never work to just use him as a wedge to divide others especially since he already nearly skewered pirates and talks about being better at torture than the Captain."
Come. [Pats the ground next to him.] I'm not trusting anyone's words, and I never will. My brother Nobuyuki I trusted very much. And he was the one sending assassins after me. He believed I was wrong. Wanting to change things that shouldn't be changed. He thought I was going to get everyone killed or worse. Corrupt their souls. I know you don't think that, but sometimes... this is why the easiest route is not the best. Remember what I said of the danger of wormholes? And yet you are willing to try them anyway. This is that. The easiest route isn't what I want. The one that will absolutely work, that will get everything I want. [Eye gleam.] I will never settle for anything less.
It isn't enough to get one person free. I demand all of us. Every single last one. Even the ghosts. And I'll deal with every obstacle in my way, without fail. And I'll abolish whatever is trapping people here so no others come, and we will bring our own history out into the other realms we go. I will use the positive emotions from music from Jeff, Ryan, Min-Gi, Eddie, and anyone else. I will be so much stronger than the Captain, and I'll show everyone that death's emotions are weak compared to the strength of joy, pride, and victory. In Earth, I used production and economics. Prosperity and peace. Maybe Max the Omnic will figure out a currency to help encourage those who need more direction and reward people directly instead of this 'permanent vacation' listlessness, but I will not work with the Captain. Understand? [Firm staring Teyrey down so she understands the full gravity of that statement.] Word by oath. I don't trust him, and I don't make contracts with demons. Tch.
Everything I do will be without talking to him. Because I don't need him. And I will prove to everyone the other ways things can be done, freedom can be achieved, especially because everyone says it's impossible, without killing him or needing his help or attention at all.
no subject
You're right about timelines. You're wrong that I think it's linear. It's infinite.
I'm not taking anything anyone says as anything other than their words until I cross reference it. And I have done so.
I know where I'm speculating, and where I'm not. You sound like Darcy. She nearly wanted to slit my throat when I tried to posit how to defeat him. It's not in the book. I tried to explain... [Looks up at the Promenade ceiling that can't be seen. He wonders which part he fell from when he "died." Almost died. Got possessed. Was it here? Elsewhere?] Do you have rock, paper, scissors in your sector? Paper beats rock, rock beats scissors, scissors beats paper.
Most of the world is scissors. 75%. Then 20% is paper. Only 5% is rock. So scissor fighter get used to tying, used to having to think of other ways to fight after a tie. And they think paper is the weakest. They think rock is the strongest, but it's just that rock is able to defeat scissors. Against paper, the ones most people think is weakest, they can't do anything. Untouchables. People like Oichi. Who can fight in a different way. This is a metaphor, don't take it too literally.
I told Skulduggery if I get through all the library, romance will be last.
I trust you, Teyrey. I don't trust Skulduggery. I don't know him. I don't have a contract with him. We're not friends. I'll drink with him, I'll do karaoke with him, but I don't know how he thinks, or why. I only know what I know, no more. I told him this weakness of mine, because if I simply hid it because I was scared, I would hate myself for being so weak and frail.
Darcy told me she was going to hug the captain, and he threatened to skin her alive and make her bones dance on stage, and use them as a puppet to give Fio nightmares. And that is about what I'd do. Actually he didn't say he'd use her bones on stage, that is what I'd have done. Or wanted to. To warn everyone else to stay the fuck away from me. [Cracks his neck.] It's good I had that fight, because days later, Crichton hugged me. Americans, right? But I love him. He is my friend. This is what I mean.
I do no mean that -- [He closes his eyes, thinking harder.] That the captain could be softened, or that we have the same weaknesses, but rather, there is a way to fight him, but you must use paper, not scissors. Rather than try to cut him, don't. Be uncrushable as paper is to rock. Untouchable. I cannot handle Oichi. That is why I sent her away. Paper to my rock. Metaphorically.
As I said, I do not know what Skulduggery is thinking. But I know he is fighting for your freedom. Maybe I don't understand that. Maybe I misinterpreted it, because that day we met, I was still new, and I was thinking of myself, of what I did in my own time, and certainly, everyone talking about the Captain's sadism, and his issues pretending to be normal -- [A bitter laugh and a handwave.] Even before that, a long time before, I spoke with others, about why they said it was torture, what things were being done, the rest. Even so. Before speaking with Skulduggery, I thought I just want people to be happier. To not be miserable. It was him who made me narrow it back to freedom, like the castes.
If he didn't want that, wouldn't it be easier to try to convince me to convince the others to just be at odds? To fight one another? Me, who can barely get along with people I like! Skulduggery doesn't know my history, and didn't talk to the Captain about me. He died in Ireland when I was still unifying Japan, and he wasn't a nobleman. So it is not like he could have thought, "Aha, I better trick this openly admitted sadist, because his whole life is about unifying people even in hell, so it would never work to just use him as a wedge to divide others especially since he already nearly skewered pirates and talks about being better at torture than the Captain."
Come. [Pats the ground next to him.] I'm not trusting anyone's words, and I never will. My brother Nobuyuki I trusted very much. And he was the one sending assassins after me. He believed I was wrong. Wanting to change things that shouldn't be changed. He thought I was going to get everyone killed or worse. Corrupt their souls. I know you don't think that, but sometimes... this is why the easiest route is not the best. Remember what I said of the danger of wormholes? And yet you are willing to try them anyway. This is that. The easiest route isn't what I want. The one that will absolutely work, that will get everything I want. [Eye gleam.] I will never settle for anything less.
It isn't enough to get one person free. I demand all of us. Every single last one. Even the ghosts. And I'll deal with every obstacle in my way, without fail. And I'll abolish whatever is trapping people here so no others come, and we will bring our own history out into the other realms we go. I will use the positive emotions from music from Jeff, Ryan, Min-Gi, Eddie, and anyone else. I will be so much stronger than the Captain, and I'll show everyone that death's emotions are weak compared to the strength of joy, pride, and victory. In Earth, I used production and economics. Prosperity and peace. Maybe Max the Omnic will figure out a currency to help encourage those who need more direction and reward people directly instead of this 'permanent vacation' listlessness, but I will not work with the Captain. Understand? [Firm staring Teyrey down so she understands the full gravity of that statement.] Word by oath. I don't trust him, and I don't make contracts with demons. Tch.
Everything I do will be without talking to him. Because I don't need him. And I will prove to everyone the other ways things can be done, freedom can be achieved, especially because everyone says it's impossible, without killing him or needing his help or attention at all.
Do you have a problem with that, General?