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[lingeringhope]

Hello.

[A man is standing before a stone wall - the wall of the cave, probably, though there aren't any distinguishing marks to show where, exactly, he might be. He seems calm, and his face is kind. He looks directly into the camera with no artifice.]

I have no doubt you were all surprised to find yourselves here. I apologize for the rather abrupt arrival - as it turns out, we have no control over who or what is brought here.

[And there, that's the slightest sign of frustration, or possibly annoyance. His mouth tightens.]

In any case, I've tried to make things comfortable for you - humans, is that correct? That's what you call yourselves? And the other things are bears, and they were not sentient [he says, as if it might have taken him a bit to realize], so I've made sure to push them out of the main part of the city. I'd rather you all not get eaten.

You can be useful to us, as it turns out, thanks to your capacity for feeling emotion. Not quite so well as the last ones, but it'll do. You can call me Hope, if you'd like, and if you could all try very hard to feel appropriately hopeful at all times, it would be extremely convenient. I need the energy to keep you fed and the power running - and for other things.

[Hope pauses for a moment, considering.]

While you all seem to be sentient, I'm not certain of your capacity for higher thought, so I'm really not sure explaining things will be much use. I'd rather not waste time explaining things you're not capable of comprehending. But for those who might be curious and wish to try to understand - some time ago a number of my companions died. I'd like to bring them back. For that, I need power, and for power, I need the emotions that you can give me. Hope, specifically.

[And he sighs, annoyance crossing his face again.]

Much to my dismay, of all my fellow - what would your kind call us? Gods? - only one has survived. Fear is here as well, and if you could all try not to give him your fear, it would make my life significantly easier. Just - don't be scared of things. Ignore him.

I suppose if you have any questions, you can ask, but you're not guaranteed an answer. In any case, welcome to Hadriel. I hope the food is palatable.

Comments

[lingeringfear]

To be quite honest with you, I think I prefer the bears.

[Fear speaks with a bit of an odd accent, and he's definitely not quite as prim as Hope. He seems a bit taller, for one, and with an appearance that suggests fear, but without the mannerisms to follow through- it ends up with him looking a bit like the kind of guy who only eats organic and does parkour for fun.

He yawns.]

Anyway, yes, most of what, uh, Hope said is true. I'm Fear, and I'd like it if you'd disregard that bit about not being afraid and instead tried to be really scared. Here, I'll even help you out.

[Fear leans menacingly into the camera but something about it just falls a little short of 'scary' and winds up seeming sort of hollow. It's probably in the lack of expression. How do human faces work?]

Go on, tell me what you're afraid of. I can make it happen.

[unitas]

Fuck you. [ The phrase tumbles out of her, breathless in her fury, not entirely intentional. His words replay in her ears like a dangerous hum, and it only worsens the coiled fear and rage in her chest. Gods, huh?

Fuck the Gods. ]

How do I get out? [ It's really the only thing that matters at this point, her dad's life is still on the line. ]

video, re: hope

[whichend]

[ Arya is still not quite sure how to use this network thing, but she knows that Hope will be able to see here face, and hear her voice, so that's good enough for her. The camera is shaky, but one can easily make out a very small, and slightly angry young girl.

She wants an explanation. Hope's previous speech hasn't cut it. ]

So you're asking us to hope, and everything will be fine? What do you take me for? I'm not some child. Hoping doesn't do anything. I don't care if that's your stupid name, it doesn't. Where was hope when the Lannisters burned villages, tortured women and children? [ Her voice becomes louder, shakier. ] Where was hope when -- when they killed my father? I tried to hope, and that did nothing. [ She spits. Hoping did nothing. The only thing you could rely on was cold steel. She learned this. ]

Why should I make your life easier?

[64th]

Well I'm certainly not afraid of you.

[lingeringfear]

That can be changed.

[Maybe. Probably.]

You haven't seen anything from me yet, human.

[64th]

I don't think you know who you pulled into your little underground prison.

[ being a smartass to Fear is the best choice, right? ]

video;

[closerift]

[ Cecily is still not great with the devices. After all, like a dozen of the others, she's never come across technology like this before and is mildly baffled by it. Still, this is too important not to respond, and she doubts a letter will find them... or, maybe it will, which is also concerning considering they're claiming to be gods. ]

What are these "other things" you intend to use our energy for? [ SOUNDS PRETTY FISHY, BUDDY. The brunette looks highly cynical, peering at Hope with all the discernment of a woman who thrives on moderate to high levels of distrust. ] And "don't be afraid of things" is rotten advice, considering it's all but out of our control.

[ As for the "gods" bit... she'll leave out that she and her companions had destroyed the last would-be god they'd come across, thankyouverymuch. ]

[lingeringhope]

That's quite rude.

[Hope seems a touch put out, but he doesn't do much more than frown.]

I wasn't the one who brought you here, so I can't get you out. If you manage to find a way, I'll be shocked.

[lingeringhope]

I didn't say everything would be fine. I asked you to hope. I'm not making any foolish promises about things being fine.

[Hope looks mildly offended at the thought of it. He peers at Arya, then, rather as if he's studying her - as if it's new and interesting to see a human getting angry.]

Making my life easier will make yours easier. I should think that's enough reason to do anything.

[lingeringhope]

Reviving the other gods, mainly, though it might be necessary for other things as well. You humans do seem to require a lot of tending.

[It's like getting a bunch of new, ungrateful pets that Hope absolutely did not ask for.]

You can't control your fear? I suppose I expected nothing else, but try your best. It's not going to get you anywhere, after all.

[lingeringhope]

You would.

[Hope is most definitely annoyed now, probably just because here Fear is, making a nuisance of himself.]

There are still bears in the caves. If you'd like to play with them, go right ahead. Keep yourself busy.

[unitas]

It sounds like you're a piss poor god, then. [ The word is spit out like venom, a sneer twisting her soft features. Is it obvious she's not friendly? To be honest, she's not entirely certain she believes a word either of the two supposed gods have said. ]

Who's responsible, then? [ To her, it sounds quite a bit like Hope is, especially if he needs people like her to power his godly whatever. ]

[lingeringfear]

Would it make much of a difference if I did?

[He tilts his head, rather unfazed by the posturing.]

You're still here, after all. You may as well be useful.

[lingeringfear]

They don't frighten as easily as your new pets.

[Pointedly. They do have goals, after all.]

Still, you didn't have to steer them away like you did. They were doing a passable job. Not entirely what I was expecting, but...

[He shrugs, dismissive.]

You can't predict everything.

[64th]

[ she rolls her eyes, exasperated. ] How does helping you benefit me? At least the other guys pretends to nice.

[lingeringfear]

Hope? He's just an idiot.

[He waves an idle hand.]

He doesn't know what he's talking about. As for you, I doubt you and your kind will have much choice in helping me. I'd prefer your cooperation of course, but I can get what I need through other means.

[Fear stops a moment and remembers Hope's comment about the relative sentience of the humans here and decides to clarify:]

That was a threat. I'm going to scare you.

[lingeringhope]

I am feeding you, and I've supplied you with shelter and communications and electricity. You ought to be grateful.

[Now he really is quite offended. At the same time, though, he seems interested - as if human anger is a new and intriguing thing.]

As for who's responsible, you can speak to Fear about that. His mistakes have nothing to do with me.

[64th]

Yeah, I got that. I'm not stupid. [ now she looks extra annoyed. she did figure out the network first, that should be worth some credit. ]

Okay. Let's say I let you scare me. What happens next?

Video

[casperdisaster]

Um.

This isn't going to involve killing us a lot for sacrifices, is it?

[americanclassic]

I hope you realize that telling people not to be afraid just because it will help you isn't exactly going to do much to put them at ease. Most sane people just find that a little... worrying.

[Said Steve, so clearly it was true.]

If you brought us here, why not send us back? Those of us who want to go might not be feeling very hopeful at the moment.

[lingeringhope]

They'd have happily eaten all these humans, and then what would you have done? I'm not here to clean up your mess, you know.

[He sounds testy, just on the edge between 'irritated' and 'scolding mother'.]

I'm not going to let monsters roam around destroying all my hard work. Not when they aren't even sentient.

[whichend]

[ She doesn't believe him. Too many people have promised to make her life easier. You're going back to Winterfell, they said. We'll just ransom you, they said. We'll give you shelter. All it costs is everything you've got.

She folds her arms. ]

I like my life how it is, without some stupid god getting in the way. And what are you going to do if I don't? Send me to hell? Because it looks like you've already brought me here.

[closerift]

And what if we've had it with gods?

[ That is, with gods tugging good people left and right and wreaking havoc on their lives? ]

We don't need to be tended, we only want to go home.

[lingeringhope]

I would prefer it if you didn't die, as it's quite inconvenient. Still, if you really must, I can't stop you.

[lingeringfear]

Intelligence varies a lot in different species. You might be smart for a human and still rather stupid.

[Fear shrugs. Good job on the network thing, though that was 100% Hope's doing. This particular god doesn't really grant you such favors.]

What happens next is that I consume your fear- it's energy for me. So I grow stronger, I find more elaborate ways to terrorize your kind, and the cycle continues. [Because that's definitely a reward in itself. Give fear so you can be more afraid later! Everyone wins!]

It's all about power. I'm sure that's relatable.