dear_mun | Got a contract with a new Angelii, pleased with his mun!

Peaks and valleys, boy. Peaks and valleys.

With her, it's usually valleys. Gotta have more peaks to balance things out.

Who said muns ever want balance? They enjoy the valleys more than the peaks. Despair is quiet entertaining.

Well, duh.

Dude, you're explaining how muns work to a guy who's been stuck with one for over three years now.

I'm talking about how things should be and trying to have a sliver of optimism here because, occasionally, she actually does listen to me. I know how things tend to work otherwise.

Perhaps I should elaborate. Despair is entertaining but not just to the mundanes. I, for one, find it to be THE most entertaining thing ever. To see someone's face as they realize true and complete despair without a glimpse of hope?

That is the most beautiful expression a face can have.

In that case, you're talking to the wrong guy. I know what is or isn't realistic a lot of the time, but I'm also one of those people who never quits. Even if it looks like there's no hope, I'll fight to the end just in case there is one tiny thread of it left to grab onto.

I don't give up on people easily, either.

So no free entertainment for sickos like you.

The human mistake of thinking hope springs eternal. Or that never surrendering is the best course of action. It's funny really.

And I'll be excited to see you try and stop me from enjoying myself.

[Rex smirks.]

Speaking of mistakes... So says the guy who's not been Awake all that long. Newbie mistake there, dude, especially given who're you're talking to.

We'll see. Don't underestimate newcomers. You never know if someone might just go and surprise you. Raw power really isn't everything. And you don't look like the brightest bulb in the box.

You know, it's kind of hard NOT to think less of newcomers when they show up shooting their mouths off, talking about stuff like they understand it when they really don't. Which is pretty much what you're doing right now.

You're making a lot of assumptions about who I am, how Ascended powers and bending work, etc. We'll see how fast that bites you in the butt later.

I'm more familiar with this Ascended powers than you might think. I know what kind of power one can have when connected to a Master Unit. I could slice and destroy time once.

Magic isn't that far off from Bending either and now I have access to it. We'll have to just see what the future holds. And thanks to my mun, that future involves bloody death and one hell of an early snow storm already.

Uh huh. And back home, I spent a short amount of time as a god and you know what? Still not quite the same.

[Rex's eyes narrow.]

Psh. We took down the Dark Aeon...and you're definitely not on the level of that monster. Not even close. So enjoy whatever power tripping you try to pull because it won't last all that long. You'll go down just like every other jerkwad who's tried to screw with Nautilus, and you'll do time for whoever you kill along the way.

And let me guess, someone will try to be my friend and make me see the error of my ways?

Pft. Whatever. I know why I was brought to Nautilus. And I'll make sure to accomplish that goal too.

You had to go and mention epic fail to the mun, didn't you? You could've saved yourself some trouble and tap danced with a ten foot long pole in the middle of a thunderstorm.

Hey, it's what she tends toward like 90% of the time, if not more. Figured I might as well try to keep her from going that direction.

Heh, mun's first reaction to that? And I quote, "Why do you ask them to do what cannot be done?"

I just don't get all the pathos and existential angst the muns think it's fun to put us through. I mean, is it too much to ask for one day on a beach with a grilled burrito and a beautiful sunset? Preferably without it ending as some monster from the ninth circle stomps after you, threatening to chew your head off.

Here's the thing, though... It totally can be done. Just...not often. Sometimes, every once in a while, she'll actually do something I want her to do.

[He's not going to comment on the beach part, mostly because that IS happening in-game right now. Sort of. Though it would be better if his mun wasn't making him look like an idiot in front of a cute girl.]

You're really going to have to tell me how you pull that trick off. I usually just hear snickering, and I walk away with an overwhelming feeling of dread.

[Probably just as well. Because, seriously? If you have beach plus cute girl to make an idiot of yourself in front of, he'd be insanely jealous right there.]

I don't think it's a trick so much as keeping in mind what she likes and trying to line that up with what I want? She loves hurting me, but she's also kind of a sucker for cute situations. If I see an opening for some big brother time with one of the kids in the city, I'll try to push for that. You know, remind her of how "adorable" it is to watch me do stuff like teach an eight year old how to make an ice cream sundae. Stuff like that.

Oh, now that I think I could do. Maybe. I know my mun loves putting me in cute but also potentially embarrassing situations. They're not my favorite, but it's preferable to running for my life.

And kids? Bede's beak, I wish everyone was as easy to talk to as kids are. Adults, you always wonder what the agenda is.

And what new Angelii would this be?

[He has a guess of who it is and he does not like it at all.]

[O HAY SIX.]

...Pitch.

[Going to play this down like it's not a big deal...because it totally shouldn't be. ~~Right?~~]

[He isn't the Six of six years in his future, but he definitely has the "I greatly disapprove" face down. (You can thank One for that.)]

Why?

[He hasn't murdered your brother because it'd make you unhappy even though he really wanted to. Now this. Why do you test him so?]

[Rex hasn't needed to explain this to anyone, yet. And now that someone is asking "why", he's actually struggling a bit with what to say.]

It's complicated.

Some of it has to do with what happened between us while I was still working with him before...

Like when he brainwashed you into attempting to kill the people trying to stop you from going too far, something you would likely regret later?

[Rex frowns and sighs.]

Pitch didn't want me killing anyone. It was counterproductive to the mission. You can't scare dead people, after all.

And the stuff I'm talking about... It's the kind of thing that made me defend Pitch like I did. Even if it was a suicide mission. He didn't order me to do that... I did it because I thought it was the only way he'd survive.

Trust me, Rex: It is very possible to scare people to death. I know that better than anyone.

[That had been a very unexpected outcome for that particular job to say the least.]

Nautilus was choked with Nightmares and the black sand. It'd only be a matter of time before people died or went mad. It wouldn't have been the intent but the repercussions would've caused changes less and less for the better. Fear is healthy to a point.

Killing Pitch would've served no purpose but to further anger you, an Ashura. He would've been back in a week, making him a living martyr for you to believe in and follow. So what tactical gain would we have earned by killing him? I'm not saying that there weren't those there out for blood. I know I would've cheerfully dragged out every moment until Pitch begged for death and deny him that request long as possible but I knew it would've been nothing more than a temporary victory.

Edited 2013-07-05 22:31 (UTC)

I meant that after people die, you can't scare them anymore because they're dead. Even if people usually come back from the dead, how long that takes isn't set in stone and would take away from the already small number of people in Nautilus. Pitch didn't want any gaps. He wanted everyone alive.

[Reaching up, Rex rubs the bridge of his nose.]

It was also never the plan to completely choke Nautilus with black sand forever. Or for a month or even for a week. We didn't have the strength necessary to do that, not even with all our will combined. The idea was to strike fast and hard and make our point. Then, if we wanted to, we could ride out whenever we felt like it and do it again later.

And you're not thinking about this from my perspective in terms of killing Pitch. I didn't have my memories of Nautilus, so I didn't know what you and Lelouch and everyone else would do with him if you caught him. Far as I knew, you killed me for what I was, so why wouldn't you kill him for the same? Or even Unmake him, just to be sure he never came back to cause trouble ever again?

I was scared for him, Six. I did what I thought was necessary to protect the person who took me in as family even though I was supposedly a monster.

I'll give you that much, but why take him on as your Angelii now?

Because he regrets what he did to me...and he shouldn't be alone.

[Not any more than you want to be alone, Six.]

[Six is quiet for a long moment.]

[And then sighs. Nothing said. Just a sigh that gets across the mixed emotions of "dammit I really hate this idea" and "the things I do for this kid". Really, Rex, your ability to trust monsters in human form and believe in their better selves Six both admires and can't stand.]

[At least he won't do that with just ANY "monster"... Only the ones who have shown some degree of regret or remorse. Some sign that they can be redeemed. Monsters like Van Kleiss on the other hand...well, they can go to hell, really.]

It'll be alright, Six. I'll be able to keep track of him if I need to using our forged connection. That'll probably make people feel better about Pitch being Ascended, too.

Makes sense, but I don't have to like it.

[Just don't expect him to be all buddy buddy with Pitch. He remembers the fallout of Pitch's stunt and how it hurt you. And he can hold one hell of a grudge.]

Don't get too comfortable with it.

Why? Do you really think it's all that bad to be bound to an Ashura? It's not like you can even feel it.

But you'll be keeping an eye on me, pretty much.

Not so much, really. You like your space and I get that. I might check the thread between us once in a while just to make sure you're okay, but when things are quiet around Nautilus, there's no point in checking all the time.

The bond's there for work and disaster situations.

...I'm glad you respect my space.

And I don't know how much 'help' I can be when disasters strike.

You know how to fight, and you've got your Nightmares and Fearlings. You might be more help than you think.

...it probably is for the best.

[STILL NOT HAPPY and still planning to work herself to the bone training to stay ahead of Pitch, but at least he has someone personally watching him who can presumably hold him accountable and keep him in line.]

I plan on giving him his space, but I'll be able to keep track of him if I absolutely have to. I'm also thinking our continued connection might do him some good. It did even back when I thought I was monster.

At least he hasn't tried even recruiting anyone since then. I guess that's a point in his favor, that he's improving. Maybe you can show him that he doesn't need to trick or brainwash people into being around him.

I don't think he knew he wanted people around him until he took me and then we changed the others into Fearlings. I also think it helps that most of us are still around and trying to keep contact with him.

Now he just needs to see that he can have a greater purpose. Fear does have its place, after all. It's just a matter of how it gets used.

Still, hopefully he'll try healthier methods next time. And maybe get friends who weren't former victims.

Good point about fear. Too bad we don't have a Batman anymore. He could teach even the boogeyman about using fear.

Got a contract with a new Angelii, pleased with his mun!

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