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

video

[so_dark_a_road]

I am very sorry you made the decision you did, that you felt you had to act as you did. But I have always rather liked you -- Delight's Bar was a favorite hangout of mine, before it was destroyed, and your presence was what made it enjoyable, not just your excellent liquor.

I appreciate that part of your deal was that the Null would send us home if we did not wish to stay, but the Null are liars. They'd have betrayed you and us in the end, no matter what they promised. They hate you and us, despite their contention that they are not contaminated with emotions. I wish you could have understood that.

I do not wish you harm, and I will not vote for any of the options Tranquility offered us. What I want is the same thing Atem does when he asks his question of you, above. What can you offer in the way of fixing this problem? You've got a bunch of angry relatives to deal with and a lot of angry Hadrielites. What can you offer in the way of a solution?

I understand losing hope. But hope can be regained, and so can family and community. I don't say this lightly, as I have real crimes on my conscience from my life in my universe, but I chose to come back from that darkness that had swallowed me. I believe you can do the same.

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[secondreturned]

You're wrong about that.

The Null don't need to lie, nor do they care for the ability to manipulate others. They have never lied- not to me and not to you, and they are all the more dangerous for it.

I don't have a solution.

video

[so_dark_a_road]

When your people and the Null cooperated with one another, in those past years, you did not suspect them of treachery until it was too late. But do you really think that they suddenly went on a rampage without planning your destruction in advance? I am versed in war, and I doubt such a level of devastation could be pulled off without an organized, well-thought-out plan. Therefore they must have deceived you in the meantime, making you believe they were still your partners in civilization-building, not your mortal enemies.

Well, you have your point of view and I have mine. I heard deception in every word they spoke.

You have many gifts, and therefore you are not useless, even now. But you don't have to have a solution right now. You couldn't come up with one by yourself anyway; that would take all eight of you, and the others would have to be willing, or to become willing. In fact, a real solution to our joint problems will only come if you and we cooperate on it. I still have hope that such a thing can happen. And I do not mean token gestures like the polls.

But the reason I want the rest of them to let you continue talking to us is that I think there are at least a few of us who can help you personally. We have known hopelessness and despair, and we have done terrible things in our own world. We know much about how to regain hope, and we have much to offer.

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[secondreturned]

I believe that is possible, yes. Once a shift in the mentality was programmed, it spread through them like a virus- they acted immediately, in unison. They are a race capable of such things.

It's a kind thought, but I'm tired of fighting a losing battle.

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[so_dark_a_road]

[ Earnestly ] Everyone who fights against overwhelming odds gets tired. Tired enough to want to just lay down and die, or tired enough to resort to desperate measures. That is why you need people around you who understand, or who are willing to try. There is comfort and renewed strength in such support. You were alone in your despair, and that is a recipe for disaster.

You do not need to lose this battle. You have more strength than you think you do, and better allies than you believe you have.