audio | content warning: death talk

[needsheadphones]

[ The whole post is broken up by static, Rebecca's voice quiet, like she's speaking more to herself than to the network. They're not words anyone is going to want to hear, and she doesn't know most of the people on the ship; they're not words necessarily meant for them. But somehow, she feels like she has to share. ]

It's easy, killing. [ At least, in comparison to the other thing on her mind. ] People do it all the time. Maybe not most of the people here, maybe not on purpose -- but people do it. They kill to protect themselves, to eat, for a cause. They even do it on accident. How many times a day do you think you kill insects, back home -- without even trying? It's a lot, I bet.

Dying... that's hard. People are scared of it. People don't want to die; there's more they could do, things that they never got around to. Plenty of people die before their time, on accident or because something or someone killed them.

Dying for someone is the hardest, I think. It's easy to be selfish. It's easy to let someone else do it, to not act. It would have been so much easier for all of us not to walk into the bridge, to try and find things out. And yeah, we could have done a better job. But we didn't do it for no reason.

I'm not saying that, if we die, we died for all of you. I'm not saying that I want to die, for all of you or for one of you. But... if you think about it, later -- if we do die -- then maybe that's how you'll think of it.

[ A pause, then a slight laugh, broken up by static. ]

Or, you know, you call us stupid. Guess we deserve that, too.

Comments

Audio

[acapriciousthing]

[A gentle voice responds]

There's never an easy way. Whatever the age, everyone is always scared. And that's okay.

Audio

[needsheadphones]

I think you can be better prepared than most people, though. Even if you're still scared.

Audio

[acapriciousthing]

Even the ones who thought they were, when the moment came.

But it's only a moment.

[G forces are a nasty way to go, but this is not the time to mention that]

Audio

[needsheadphones]

Well, unless you die really slowly. But I guess the actual part where you die, yeah.

Audio

[acapriciousthing]

That's the bit I'm usually there for. No one ever finds it easy.

text;

[vindictam]

[ He's not very good at comfort but -- ]

Most go their whole lives not coming to terms with death. [ comfort, Corvo, she's dying maybe and it is lonely in there. He should know better than most, at least for prisons sake. ] And mistakes are made to be learned from.

[ Which he is trying to say that it won't be in vain. Something will be learnt from all of this. Or at least he hopes it is. But he didn't have the need to sugar coat their foolishness either. ]

text;

[needsheadphones]

ignoring the past fucks up the future

make sure they don't forget

[ Not that she knows who he is, but he's said that much, and Rebecca needs someone to remember. ]

text;

[vindictam]

But only wise men remember that. And plenty of men are clever, but not wise.

[ He's perfectly solmen. ]

If no one else, lady, I will remember. You have my word, at that.

text;

[needsheadphones]

thank you.

i'm rebecca. that doesn't matter as much, but i don't know a lot of people here. if you're already going to remember...

voice;

[thebreakingwave]

Umm, I don't if this will help, or if it's appropriate, but I'll stay on the line with you until the jump? If you want?

[He barely knows Rebecca, but it's the least he can do.]

voice;

[needsheadphones]

You need to get in the pods before the jump, Harry.

[ Still, it's... yeah, it's a nice gesture. ]

It's okay, though. There are sixteen of us in here; I'm not alone.

[ She wishes she were. She wishes it were just her and not the others. ]

voice;

[thebreakingwave]

I know and I'll get there. I've got time.

If you want to talk, I can do that, or I can read you something?

[He pauses, there's a shuffle, and he sounds as if he's about to say something and doesn't. Instead, he clicks their call to private. Harry has no encryption, but it's marked as 'locked'.]

Just in case you don't get out in time, umm, I don't really talk about this, but it's shit. Dying, I mean. It's stupid, but it's not...

[Enjoy the noise of a frustrated nineteen year old trying to say something important.]

I died before I came here and it's a waste, but there's an afterlife and it's okay. I don't mean a white light at the end of a tunnel, but an actual place and it's good. Just, you know, in case you were worried. Because I had been, at the time.

[needsheadphones]

Just no magic glassblowing this time.

[ Rebecca isn't sure if the lock sticks; the comms are being temperamental for all of them stuck on the bridge. Either way, though, what Harry says is appreciated. She's quiet for a moment, forcing herself to sound steadier than she feels. ]

What, like-- like heaven or something? [ Pause. ] Wait, you're...?

action.

[kutte]

They're gonna say what they want, you know.

[ jax is watching her, exhaling smoke from his cigarette. he'd been rationing, but it's getting close to--

well, it seems pointless to try to save this pack, to say the least. ]

Doesn't matter how nice of a speech you make.

action.

[needsheadphones]

It wasn't a speech. Not really.

[ The urge to turn her music up, to drown out the world, is suddenly overwhelming. She doesn't, though. Maybe right at the end, right before. ]

Just... as long as they don't forget and try it again, I guess.

[kutte]

They won't. People are fucking good at remembering cautionary tales.

[ jax deals in cautionary tales, in providing compelling reasons for people not to fuck with his loved ones. a disaster on this scale? it'd be a damn good thing. ]

[needsheadphones]

[ She just snorts. Rebecca's life is a conspiracy theory; the opposite has been true, in her experience. ]

voice »

[rancorously]

You deserve being called stupid more than you deserve a pat on the back for dying for some reason.

[ that was really flippant but he can't help it because he does find this stupid and senseless. there's better reasons to die for if you're going to have to die. ]

voice »

[needsheadphones]

I'm not arguing that.

voice »

[rancorously]

You don't exactly sound like it.

voice »

[needsheadphones]

Clean the shit out of your ears, then.

[ it just sounds tired, though. ]

text. sorry for the lateness of this ;;

[chaineddog]

Dying is easy.

[He's lost count the number of times he's died.]

text. no problem!

[needsheadphones]

when you're not expecting it, maybe.

text.

[chaineddog]

Or when it isn't permanent.

text.

[needsheadphones]

yeah, pretty sure I don't have that option