4 ☄ voice

[fifthreturned]

All right, guys. I guess you probably already know where this is going. I managed to catch Delight before she could get out of here, so now we just have to decide what to do with her. Needless to say, we can't agree, and anyway what she did hurt you guys just as much as it did us.

So this decision is gonna be up to you. Obviously there are some options that aren't available - we're not just gonna let her go free. That would be pretty dumb, right? But a lot of us don't want the more extreme options, either.

We'll tell you how we feel in a reply to this. Think about it yourselves, and vote. You'll have about a week to decide.

Man. This sucks.

Poll #19227 What should we do with Delight?

This poll is closed.
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 66

What should we do with Delight?

Imprison her
37 (56.1%)

Exile her
5 (7.6%)

Kill her
24 (36.4%)

Comments

[firstreturned]

I say we imprison her. We can't afford to lose one of our own. We work best when we're all together. Delight acted out of wanting to keep us alive, but now that she knows how pointless that is, she won't do it again. Even if she doesn't understand, she'll be cut off from anyone but us. We can't exile her, much less execute her. Our best chance at survival -- and your best chance at getting wherever it is you want to go -- rests with all of us being together. Don't be rash here.

[voice]

[elegant_and_proud]

Do you believe that you could persuade Delight to give all of the information that she has about the Null if she was imprisoned here?

[lingeringfear]

We sacrificed ourselves time and again for the continuation of our species. We watched our cities burn and we watched our beloved hosts die at the hands of the Null and we could do nothing to stop it. Everything we have done since then- everything- has been for survival.

Delight made herself a threat to that survival. She did it for you, maybe- she certainly has an affection for all of you that I can't seem to understand- or she did it for herself, but the end of the matter is that she betrayed us. She made a desperate act and would destroy everything that we've done in these past few years and I refuse to take the risk of her acting against us again. She dies.

video

[so_dark_a_road]

I do not think she did it for us, although we may have factored into her decision. She does seem to like us. But I think that she acted out of overwhelming despair, and neither humans nor gods make good decisions in that state.

[ Small smile. ] Sorry we don't live up to your standards for beings who can evoke affection!

[fifthreturned]

I guess I'm gonna have to go with exile. I'm not really down with killing Delight - she did some fucked up stuff, but she's still one of us. On the other hand, it's not like we can trust her, either, and keeping her here would just be asking for trouble. Plus, it'd be pretty complicated. If we exile her, she won't be able to find her way back to us, but she'll be alive. It's not ideal or anything, but I feel like it's kind of the best we can do.

[elegant_and_proud]

How well can you track one another's energy? I know you can sense each other's presences, but how far do you have to be from one another? Exiling her does pose a certain risk.

[fourthreturned]

Kill her. We can't abide a traitor. Kill her, and we can work unimpeded to deal with the problems we were already facing before she betrayed us. We lost Sorrow because of her. We almost lost Hope. We've lost enough to the Null, and if the annihilation of our prior hosts wasn't enough to deter Delight from dealing with those murderers, nothing will change her mind. Kill her and get rid of the problem. Do the smart thing for once.

[lingeringhope]

My preference is for imprisonment. Despite all that she has done - which should not, and will not, be forgotten - Delight is still one of us. She is misguided and treacherous, but not evil. I would prefer to keep her here, where we can watch and speak to her, though of course she would not be allowed to contact any of you. Perhaps, with time, we could convince her of the error of her ways. Regardless, I could not ever wish for her death, and exile seems like giving up hope that she could change. Turning our backs on her, when there are so few of us left.

That said, I believe I was the closest of us to Sorrow. I think I know his mind well. While I do not agree with it, and never could, he would wish for her execution. Make of that what you will.

[ritualized]

I'm sure it's painful to answer this question. I'm sorry that I have to ask.

What do you think Sorrow's reasoning would be? Why would he choose that answer?

[lastreturned]

WOW, THIS IS TOUGH! BUT IN THE END, I THINK I HAVE TO ADVOCATE FOR EXILE. :( I DEFINITELY DON'T WANT TO KILL DELIGHT, SHE'S BEEN A GOOD FRIEND IN THE PAST, EVEN IF... WELL, THINGS DIDN'T TURN OUT SO GREAT. PLUS, IT WOULD REALLY SUCK TO LOSE ANOTHER OF US! BUT KEEPING HER HERE SEEMS PRETTY DUMB. SINCE SHE WANTED THE NULL TO COME CAPTURE US, IT'S ONLY FAIR THAT SHE GETS A CHANCE TO SEE WHAT LIFE WOULD BE LIKE WITH THEM, I GUESS. SHE DOESN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT US THAT THEY DON'T ALREADY KNOW, SO SHE CAN'T GIVE THEM SPECIAL INFO, AND KEEPING HER HERE WOULD JUST BE ASKING FOR ANOTHER BETRAYAL.

SO LET'S SEND HER AWAY. BETTER THAN DEATH!

[secondreturned]

...so I guess the secret's out now. I don't think I'll be allowed to answer questions, so I'll try to make my case here.

We're dying. It's slow and there's been revivals, but there's no stopping the end. I've felt it and I've seen what the Null are capable of. What my former-allies are trying to convince you of, that there's hope and we can survive... it's wrong. I don't believe that, and deep down, I don't think most of them do either.

I did what I did to save what I could. I would save all of you if I could, but the Null cut me down before and they'd do it again without a second thought. So I compromised. I told them where our city was and allowed them inside, I allowed them to hurt anyone who resisted on the agreement that they would not touch those who did not- that they'd send the rest of you home. I allowed them to do this because they have the capability now to use the remaining gods as an energy source. I know that that's better than death, and I made that decision for everyone.

The agreement was that Hope had to die. He posed too much of a threat to their plan. I followed through and played my part, but you stopped me. You survived. Maybe that means that there's hope for a different ending for some of you... but I lost hope a long time ago. Like Sorrow- like Fear, like all of you... I'm just trying to make it through this. Take that as you will.

Voice

[knifecollecting]

You might have been trying to "save" us, but you betrayed a lot of us to do that. We trusted you. We helped you. [Delight had been her favorite of the gods, though she probably helped Hope a bit more than Delight in the end with her actual emotions.]

A lot of us died because of you. It's going to be harder than ever now, all because of you. We're lucky Hope survived. [She takes a deep breath here, finally steadying her voice.]

If you want to be a slave for the rest of your life you don't get to decide that for the rest of them. Or us.

text;

[trashmouths]

Just imprison her. i mean she's a god its probably a bat thing if we banish her or kill her right???

text;

[fifthreturned]

All of the options are things we can work with, yeah? We wouldn't have proposed them if they weren't.

[Video]

[wonderland_vogue]

[Totally just to make her point here otherwise, who knows.]

Generally leaving any sort of traitor alive is just asking for trouble, but then again I can't say I know much here.

But the incompetence here seems to be overwhelming in the first place, huh.

[Video]

[fifthreturned]

Hey, thanks for your opinion. You're definitely right about one thing: you don't really know that much.

speech to text

[sonofacesius]

How can we be sure she's not going to escape if she's imprisoned?

text

[fifthreturned]

Can't really be 100 percent sure of anything. That's something else to keep in mind. I mean, we'd do our best.

[radiopalkiller]

Imprison her where? And how?

[fifthreturned]

Here, and the same way she's imprisoned right now. It'd just be permanent, instead of temporary.

[voice]

[hot_mes]

You can't make up your minds so you're asking us. [typical] I don't care what other people want to do or how they vote, but I won't be participating in this.

Where I come from, there's one unwritten but inviolable law among pirates: you don't betray your crew, the people into whose hands you've placed your life and trust. You seven idiots are more or less a crew. She betrayed you, so it's up to you to deal with her. As far as I see it, no matter how I feel about that betrayal, I have no right to decide her fate.

[voice]

[fifthreturned]

Yeah, our vote deadlocked. We argued about it for a couple weeks, but no one's budging, and you guys are always saying you want more say in things around here. The solution was obvious, but you don't have to participate if you don't want to.

[paragonbrosca]

I'm still waiting for a reason not to slit her throat and toss her in the river. I haven't heard it yet.

[fifthreturned]

You can talk to those of us who don't want to kill her. Rage, maybe. She's got some opinions.

( text )

[ghoulaid]

isnt exile basically death? thought u couldnt survive without a bunch of emotions to eat
u gonna set her up on a nice feelingsfarm so she doesnt go all super-leech on the first living things she finds?

( text )

[fifthreturned]

We figure she'd be going to the Null, who say they have ways of keeping us alive. It's what she wanted to do to us.

[video]

[wormintheglass]

[Bianca broadcasts from Rage's temple. She's sitting outside its doors, swathed in something pale-coloured and diaphanous against the sun. She's gaunt, tanned and unsmiling and her voice is venomously angry.]

I'm voting for imprisonment. Not because I'm soft. Not because I want to be merciful. I vote imprisonment because it's the worst fate I can offer. Why should she be allowed death or freedom? Chain her in her temple like the untrustworthy animal she is. Let her face those she betrayed, day in and day out. Let her feel our rage and our hurt every day of her miserable existence.

[text/private/Rage]

you know her best and she has hurt you worst of all. they need to back your decision.

text/private

[firstreturned]

They'll do what they want. I won't force their hand. Besides, you're the ones deciding this. We're split evenly on this.

text; (fine with threadjacking)

[multivitamins]

if you exile them then you don't know where they are and killing them would be a shitty thing to do.

text; (fine with threadjacking)

[fifthreturned]

Thanks for your thoughts, man.

[Video]

[requiemshark]

[Ephemera looks exhausted and about two steps away from starting a fight.]

Kill the bitch.

[Video]

[fifthreturned]

Thanks for sharing your opinion, man.

Voice

[utulien_aure]

Imprisonment.

Needless death is a waste. And in my experience, all exile does is make a bad problem worse.

not here

[hot_mes]

[the Noldor would know, wouldn't they?]

voice;

[lemontree]

More than few have betrayed me. I have imprisoned, exiled, and killed.

[ The Harpy was murdered despite his imprisonment. The exiled man returned. The killing only sparked more bloodshed.

... ]

If she is dead, then she cannot pose a threat to us again.

voice;

[fifthreturned]

You're not the only one who thinks so. Thanks for your opinion.

[64th]

where I'm from, the punishment for treason is death or a lifetime of servitude. That being said, I vote imprisonment.

[fifthreturned]

We don't really do servitude. Not like that, anyway.

[dreamsallotted]

Back home, we tried imprisonment and exile. It only made things so much worse. She has to pay for her crimes. Delight is completely unrepentant.

If she is dead, she isn't a threat anymore. Leave her alive and she will betray us again.

Keep her where she is now and let her starve to death.

[fifthreturned]

Execution is faster and kinder, and it's what we'll do if that option is chosen. Starvation... well, it takes a lot longer for us. It's different, since we don't eat.

voice;

[hasitsthorns]

I used to believe that an eye for an eye makes the world go blind. That every saint has a past and every sinner has a future. That there was something redeemable in everyone, and-

Maybe there still is, in Delight. Maybe I do still believe that.

[ She has to because if she doesn't, what does that mean for her? ]

The road to hell is paved with good intentions is a human saying. She was trying to do something right just unfortunately did it in the worst way possible. I'm no stranger to fucking up that spectacularly, of wanting to help and only making things that much worse for it. I know all this and empathize with Delight for it, but-

[ A sharp inhale, a shaky breath following. ]

She also killed one of my pack. One of yours. And that is nothing I will ever stand for again. That is nothing I will ever forgive. I watched the Yao Corporation tear away everything I loved right before my eyes - probably like you watched the Null burn your cities and slaughter your people - and felt small and helpless. I will not give anyone the power to make me or the people I love live that way. Not again. Never again. Not Yao, not the Null, not Delight, not anyone.

My vote is for death.

[voice]

[wormintheglass]

Oh, darling. I am so sorry.

video;

[needlebearer]

I only just arrived, and I don't really understand everything that's happened. But I do know that the only way to deal with an enemy is to kill them. If you leave her alive, she'll only cause trouble for you in the future.

video;

[fifthreturned]

Thanks for sharing your opinion with us.

[video]

[whip_poor_will]

Out of everyone here most affected by this betrayal, it is your kind that have suffered most. What has been done to the visitors here can be undone and mended, but you have lost not merely one of your own -- but two, if that is what is decided.

In my experience, death is not absolute. As your people have defied it on more than one occasion, it would seem that's to be the case here as well. Imprisonment would be the best chance to guarantee the safety and continuation of your species. Just as she had turned on you, I believe in change as well. I believe in redemption and salvation, if it is allowed.

[Ravine has been witness to social and emotional evolution for a long time. Some things never change, but the change she has seen has left her a bit of a hopeless optimist. She smiles, seeing how some things never change no matter what world you've stepped into.]

That said, I would advise against one more needless death. After all, "Keep your friends close... and your enemies closer."

[video]

[fifthreturned]

If she dies, it's final.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

video;

[demonsional]

Um...

[Hayden is wrestling with the distinct feeling that he's not qualified to weigh in on this matter...but, here he is. Because he lives here now, too. This is a very serious time so he wants to do as good of a job as he can with his thoughts. They're all kind of scrambled around in his distress, but he tries to pick them up and put them into a semblance of order before continuing. Needless to say, he has a few starts and stops.]

I didn't talk to Miss Lady Delight...I didn't get to talk to her or any of you except for Lord...Mister Hope, but I know people who told me that Delight is their favorite. And if Hope wants to imprison her I think that's the best idea. Also because...because it's bad to kill people. It's sad and scary and a lot of people will be upset. If there are other options those are the better options. But being alone away from your friends and your family is also bad, so I don't think that exile is good either. I know I felt sad when I had to go away from my sister, and I'd feel sad to leave everybody here now, too. Um...yes, she should stay.

[Another hesitation. He's said his general opinion but he doesn't feel like he's done. Hayden's eyes kind of flick around.]

She sounded really sad. I know she did a bad decision but she is maybe hurting also. And, um, she said she doesn't think she has hope left anymore, but that's how the bad thoughts get in, so...it's important...I think, when you say that, that's when you lose hope for real.

[This is getting more scattered, his distress shows, so he quickens his words before signing off.]

I really liked Mister Sorrow's trees and I'm sorry that I never told him! I'm sorry that you lost a friend and that I couldn't help! I'm really sorry!

video;

[fifthreturned]

Hey, it's not your fault. You've got nothing to apologize for. Thanks for being so honest, all right?