[come_sailaway inbox]

[prince_of_beasts]

A synthesized woman's voice picks up the call.

"Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voice message system. Two - Zero - Two - Nine - One - Eight - Two - One - Three - Two -- is not available now. At the tone, please record your message. When you've finished recording, you may hang up or press the # key for more options."

Dimitri hasn't figured out how to customize the thing yet.

Comments

[astrogator]

Thank you for understanding. I value that.

It would really help if you could tell me if anything unusual happened while I was gone. Any attacks, or attempts at them? Someone had the theory that the person who signed me up for torture might not have been acting on a grudge so much as wanting me out of the way so they could do something. Not that I can guess what.

[prince_of_beasts]

Nothing happened.
I couldn't even reach our cab captor when I tried.
I almost wish it had.
So I could feel there was some use to my remaining behind.

[astrogator]

I am deeply ashamed that despite myself I was useful to my captor. I swore that I never would be.

The use of you staying behind, if you won't hear an argument for your own sake, is to protect the most vulnerable among us. To me there's more honor in that than in anything else. So nothing happened? Out on my ship I used to keep watch through dark half of second shift. Nothing ever happened - until it did, and my vigilance meant I raised the alarm and we saw off the threat.

I thought of you. I worried for Fio and for some of the others, and I reminded myself that they were safe because you were there to protect them.

[prince_of_beasts]

Dimitri shuts his eyes. It's several minutes before he can answer; his throat is knotted, and his hands are shaking too badly.

I.
Grate greatly appreciate your words.

As to what happened there I.
Have heard some of what the village was like and I.
Believe I can speak to a Simm similar experience if you are willing to hear it.
But it is not a a conversation well suited to text.

[astrogator]

[Ari's experience doesn't mirror many of the others'. Her shame - that under torture she felt pain and distress instead of nothing at all, and as as a result contributed fuel to the maintenance of her hated prison - is one she'd have called irrational in anyone else. She wasn't compromised. She never broke, never even faltered, but at the end when she was teleported into a locked and crowded room without warning, old trauma took hold of her.

She doesn't yet know that others betrayed their friends then, or even that Ava killed Number 2. She was too far gone to pay attention to any of it.]

I would truly appreciate hearing of your experience, if you are willing to share. Only I have to ask to delay that conversation. I am not in a position to have visitors and I don't know when I will be.

This doesn't change anything else I've told you. You know me well enough to know I'll always choose honesty, yes?

[prince_of_beasts]

I do.
You are right.
If violence had broken out with no one to intervene I would regret having left my post.
It is difficult for me to accept.
But I will try.

The logic is sound. Dimitri's also still cursed, and he should have known better, but Tayrey barely accepts magic as a subset of natural law; Dimitri is not going to argue with her about fate.

Of course.
We need not speak of anything unless and until you are ready for it.
If I may say only.
Whatever happened there.
It does not and will not diminish my respect for you.

[astrogator]

I value that assurance very much. Thank you. I don't want to misrepresent myself to you, so I'll tell you about it someday. When I can.

As for you, take your time and try to be kind to yourself. Even if you can't use a reason for it beyond that it'll help your productivity.