001 ✶ audio/action

[scarletcast]

For those of you who have [ pause, a low hum, ] superpowers. Has this place ever taken them from you?

​​[ A beat. ]

If you wish to speak in person, I will be in the park. In the red jacket.

​​[ She has ways of being completely private, but that's a little invasive and not something to advertise. Anyone heading to the park to speak to her or in the vicinity will see a young woman on a bench, with a thermos full of tea next to her, steam rising off the cup clasped in her hands. ]

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voice

[scarletcast]

[ He counts. She hums quietly. ]

If it can't send us home, they let us keep our abilities.

[ A beat. ]

So far.

[wipedclean]

So far.

[That does not sound good.]

What makes you think we will lose them?

[scarletcast]

If it had happened in the past it might happen again.

[ A beat. ]

And if others are affected who is to say we will not be?

[wipedclean]

[He can't really imagine what he has, what he is, to be taken away. Take it away and you take him away. He's the weapon. It's all he can really remember being (at least clearly), and it's all he can concieve of being.]

This is not something I had thought to worry about.

[Nor does he want to worry about it. It's upsetting. He has other things he needs to concentrate on.]

[scarletcast]

[ She huffs. ]

It is something I have been thinking about. It is possible, if they want us angry and afraid.

[wipedclean]

[He grunts, not really agreeing or disagreeing.]

It's difficult to tell where their line is between wanting our help and wanting to toy with our emotions.

[scarletcast]

They are not separate.

[wipedclean]

No. But they must realize we are more helpful when we have our wits about us and our abilities and weapons at our disposal.

[He's pretty sure they do, otherwise Rage wouldn't have given them the armory and made the offer for the ammo trade.]

[scarletcast]

That is always what they do when they want us to become complacent.

[ She exhales, sharply. ]

Perhaps their agenda is less malicious than I think, but I am not willing to believe that until I see it.

[wipedclean]

[He snorts softly.]

No. It's good to be suspicious. Trusting them fully is stupid.

[He just doesn't want to have to worry about losing his strength on top of everything else.]

[scarletcast]

It is, [ an echo. She tilts her head at him, curious. ] have you spoken to any one of them?

[wipedclean]

Yes. Hope and Delight are ridiculous. Fear is... Interesting. Rage... She likes that I kill monsters for her. [They get along.]

I haven't spoken to the new one yet.

[scarletcast]

[ Starving them is better leverage, but rage is the one emotion she can't stave off. It is her refuge when most fear its single-mindedness. STARK in block white letters. She does not forget. ]

Define interesting.

[wipedclean]

[He hums thoughtfully.]

We didn't speak long. But he didn't seem outwardly malicious. Just curious.

[Granted, he's curious about what makes people tick, and what makes them afraid, and is curious to exploit that, but...]

He's forthright, where the others... I think Hope and Delight might be more dangerous, if only because they try too hard to help despite not understanding us.