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[ Well, they sure don't disagree on the last part. However, there's a wariness to his response. ]
What sorta information? [ In some ways, Ren isn't exactly the most private person, projecting across their link like an awful headache (and sometimes doing exactly that on purpose), but there's still a lot that Steve doesn't know about the guy. ]
What sorta information? [ In some ways, Ren isn't exactly the most private person, projecting across their link like an awful headache (and sometimes doing exactly that on purpose), but there's still a lot that Steve doesn't know about the guy. ]
[ She is quiet for a long moment as well, not wanting to continue because to talk about Kylo Ren was to talk about herself. They were entangled because they were alike beneath their divergent exteriors. They were fearful and weak and used devotion and dogma to make themselves feel safe. For all the independence and personality each showed, they were shadows of people, their minds twisted, parts of themselves lost years ago. It drew them together. They saw it in each other. ]
Sometimes I become so agitated that it hurts those around me. [ He knows. He's felt it. She swallows. ] It swallows me, as if burning inside. Ren is... I understand him.
Sometimes I become so agitated that it hurts those around me. [ He knows. He's felt it. She swallows. ] It swallows me, as if burning inside. Ren is... I understand him.
Edited (WORDS.) 2016-04-26 03:11 (UTC)
[ They aren't so close, but Hux can tell there's hesitance in his answer. In a way, to be expected– he could be here to tell Steve anything.
But, he'll stick to facts, because there's not a use for anything else. ]
How to handle him better. You're in his brood, so you'll be most exposed to his less than stellar control. [ Understatement of the year. ] It might help to know where he's coming from, though there's no guarantee he'll be any more understandable.
[ He's known him for a while and he's still puzzled. Frustrated, mostly. ]
But, he'll stick to facts, because there's not a use for anything else. ]
How to handle him better. You're in his brood, so you'll be most exposed to his less than stellar control. [ Understatement of the year. ] It might help to know where he's coming from, though there's no guarantee he'll be any more understandable.
[ He's known him for a while and he's still puzzled. Frustrated, mostly. ]
[It's like observing fish eddying under cloudied water: the silver scale flash of his anger or frustration, the dark shape of something sobering like guilt there and then invisible again to the naked eye. She is patience, quiet, and for the length of time that he says nothing she does nothing but resort and shuffle the deck of oddly shaped cards. There is the hiss of their thin plastic backing moving against one another, the faint chime of the charms at her wrists, and little else.
The Station is so still.]
Yes. We are aware and have plans to make our expectations more clear to him. We worry more about what will happen when we aren't present to remind him of his duty, or when The Prince isn't there to stay the hand of certain young hosts who don't know any better. [She cuts the deck. Shuffles. Regards him thoughtfully.] What of Ilde?
The Station is so still.]
Yes. We are aware and have plans to make our expectations more clear to him. We worry more about what will happen when we aren't present to remind him of his duty, or when The Prince isn't there to stay the hand of certain young hosts who don't know any better. [She cuts the deck. Shuffles. Regards him thoughtfully.] What of Ilde?
[ In the silence he pulls his knees up, resting his chin on them while his gaze fixes on some point in the distance. ]
I know. [ The line between his eyebrows deepens. ] But I think you care if you hurt people.
[ Forceful words, lines drawn. Understanding can only go so far. They're each they're own person, no matter how easy or tempting it is to blend and echo thoughts. No matter how much their pasts mirror each other. There's strength to those differences.
Between Ilde and Ren, Steve sees the big difference in that the latter has no desire or intention to learn control. ]
I know. [ The line between his eyebrows deepens. ] But I think you care if you hurt people.
[ Forceful words, lines drawn. Understanding can only go so far. They're each they're own person, no matter how easy or tempting it is to blend and echo thoughts. No matter how much their pasts mirror each other. There's strength to those differences.
Between Ilde and Ren, Steve sees the big difference in that the latter has no desire or intention to learn control. ]
Edited 2016-04-26 20:43 (UTC)
[ She can't say that's true. She isn't sorry that the punk is dead, she's only sorry that anyone made the connection between herself and her brood. She cares with specificity, and even her care is precarious, built out of selfishness; self-satisfaction. ]
You are mistaken about me.
[ A sigh. ]
I will not allow him to be dismissed. He is ours.
[ Determination to her brood. ]
You are mistaken about me.
[ A sigh. ]
I will not allow him to be dismissed. He is ours.
[ Determination to her brood. ]
[ He frowns, glancing down at the space between them for a few seconds. ]
How's it that you two know each other? [ Lifting his gaze again. He ought to know that first, give some context to whatever else Hux wants to tell him. ]
How's it that you two know each other? [ Lifting his gaze again. He ought to know that first, give some context to whatever else Hux wants to tell him. ]
[ Getting Ren to respect him is going to be an uphill battle. That alone isn't enough to deter Steve. He just needs a better plan, and right now he's coming up blank.
At the mention of Ilde his expression goes guarded. ]
What about her?
[ He knows what she did. ]
At the mention of Ilde his expression goes guarded. ]
What about her?
[ He knows what she did. ]
We've worked together for a while. In lieu of him having a military rank, he's something like a secondary command.
[ And quite frankly, when his head was in the game, he wasn't bad at it. The gamble was just whether he was in a good mood or a sour one. Usually it was the latter. Still, they got things done. ]
[ And quite frankly, when his head was in the game, he wasn't bad at it. The gamble was just whether he was in a good mood or a sour one. Usually it was the latter. Still, they got things done. ]
[ Stubbornness right back: ]
I don't think I am. [ Even if she only cared about them right now, it was something. He's not as sure Ren wouldn't have rather seen him fall down that cliff. But - ] I'll talk to him later.
[ He knows he can't ignore Ren forever. ]
I don't think I am. [ Even if she only cared about them right now, it was something. He's not as sure Ren wouldn't have rather seen him fall down that cliff. But - ] I'll talk to him later.
[ He knows he can't ignore Ren forever. ]
[ Silent for a moment, looking at him. She is reminded, as she often enough is, that there is a reason she is tied to him. They too have their similarities. She inclines her head, letting the emotions that have been making her face red quiet themselves once more. ]
As will I.
[ Though assuredly each of those conversations will be very different. ]
As will I.
[ Though assuredly each of those conversations will be very different. ]
[ Military and not-military.
Arms cross over his chest. ]
Doesn't seem like he's looking to take orders from just anyone.
[ He just acts. Normally, that'd be a good thing. Ren's compass is more than a little skewed. ]
Arms cross over his chest. ]
Doesn't seem like he's looking to take orders from just anyone.
[ He just acts. Normally, that'd be a good thing. Ren's compass is more than a little skewed. ]
We are concerned she feels no obligation to anything but her brood.
[Not an inherently bad thing, everything considered, but clearly it could develop into problematic situations. She cuts the deck and shuffles once more for the sake of being thorough, then squares the deck in it's entirety. A pause.]
Perhaps it will change in time, but there will be places where you go that violence - even justified kinds - will be dangerous. Untenable, even.
[Not an inherently bad thing, everything considered, but clearly it could develop into problematic situations. She cuts the deck and shuffles once more for the sake of being thorough, then squares the deck in it's entirety. A pause.]
Perhaps it will change in time, but there will be places where you go that violence - even justified kinds - will be dangerous. Untenable, even.
[It is unlike him to do this in this fashion, but he recognizes the necessity of it. Still, when he reaches out it is unlike the gentle brush of Cathaway, uncolored by emotion, an empty space that seemed to gape, somehow nearly as unsettling as a mind too bare. His words are preceded by the obviousness of his attention, an anticipation, the mental equivalent to clearing his throat. And the words- stony and without warmth or comfort, unyielding and stern. He will not react to interruption. He won't even hear it.]
There are many things to discuss with you. [You- you, all of you, everyone he addressed- the clear knowledge that it was not a personal message, but a shared one.] This mission was a failure. Do not think to see it as anything less. The simplest of exercises intended only to allow those unaccustomed to gain some small experience with unfamiliar places. A harmless excursion.
[There's a pause, like a breath, a cold wind going colder.]
It was my failure that I saw you as anything but children, incapable of understanding that your choices have consequences. It is not a mistake I will make again. Your actions have proven you to be irresponsible, dangerous, and foolish. And as a result one of your own has died, for nothing. Those in his brood have now lost something irreplaceable. Do not imagine this feeling will go, do not imagine this emptiness will be filled by another. It will not. You will never be as strong as you could have been with him.
[It is simple fact, even as they grew they would lend each other strength. Now they had one less to draw from. There was a potential they would never reach.]
Hosts are lost. This is the reality of our situation, but Adam Parker did not die because we sought to strike a blow against the ones who hunt us. He did not even die because he made a foolish mistake. He died because you made a selfish choice. Remember this, your decisions effect more than you. Even your own life is not just yours any longer. You should be at least responsible enough not to drag those who should be able to rely on to their death.
[There is little point to this, he knows. Those that had behaved poorly would not listen to words, and if they had not yet learned a lesson there would be more loss and more suffering before they did. Still, this is too soon for this.]
There will be some time before you will be sent on your first true mission. I suggest you use it to better yourselves, for all of your sake.
[And the connection drops- cleanly as if he had flipped a switch. His mind was still there, as it always was, but distant, uninviting. This was never meant to be a dialogue.]
There are many things to discuss with you. [You- you, all of you, everyone he addressed- the clear knowledge that it was not a personal message, but a shared one.] This mission was a failure. Do not think to see it as anything less. The simplest of exercises intended only to allow those unaccustomed to gain some small experience with unfamiliar places. A harmless excursion.
[There's a pause, like a breath, a cold wind going colder.]
It was my failure that I saw you as anything but children, incapable of understanding that your choices have consequences. It is not a mistake I will make again. Your actions have proven you to be irresponsible, dangerous, and foolish. And as a result one of your own has died, for nothing. Those in his brood have now lost something irreplaceable. Do not imagine this feeling will go, do not imagine this emptiness will be filled by another. It will not. You will never be as strong as you could have been with him.
[It is simple fact, even as they grew they would lend each other strength. Now they had one less to draw from. There was a potential they would never reach.]
Hosts are lost. This is the reality of our situation, but Adam Parker did not die because we sought to strike a blow against the ones who hunt us. He did not even die because he made a foolish mistake. He died because you made a selfish choice. Remember this, your decisions effect more than you. Even your own life is not just yours any longer. You should be at least responsible enough not to drag those who should be able to rely on to their death.
[There is little point to this, he knows. Those that had behaved poorly would not listen to words, and if they had not yet learned a lesson there would be more loss and more suffering before they did. Still, this is too soon for this.]
There will be some time before you will be sent on your first true mission. I suggest you use it to better yourselves, for all of your sake.
[And the connection drops- cleanly as if he had flipped a switch. His mind was still there, as it always was, but distant, uninviting. This was never meant to be a dialogue.]
Edited (bet u thought u got out of ur spankin) 2016-04-28 03:56 (UTC)
[ Ilde had admitted almost the same thing. He doesn't believe it.
His eyes follow the cards again. ]
How's it decided when we'll be sent out? [ To places like that. Real missions. Was it her and the Prince, other guardians deeper in the Nest? The parts of him that need to keep moving and fighting are partially tempered by their loss, the reminder that they're not nearly ready to face the creatures that chased them here. ]
His eyes follow the cards again. ]
How's it decided when we'll be sent out? [ To places like that. Real missions. Was it her and the Prince, other guardians deeper in the Nest? The parts of him that need to keep moving and fighting are partially tempered by their loss, the reminder that they're not nearly ready to face the creatures that chased them here. ]
[She blinks and seems surprised by the question. Strange; it's not one she would've predicted. That said in a moment the startled look has slipped from her features, sublimated into whatever great thing moves behind them. She draws her first card.]
We are informed. It's difficult to explain, but we feel it at the appropriate time and junction. Then we use the Station's systems to parse the information. It comes from somewhere deeper, but we aren't close enough to name its source for certain.
[There's something...uncomfortable in it, something about the lack of data that disturbs her. But that's the way it is; it's the way it always has been; if she wished to know an answer to such a question, it would require more of her than she can give if her place here is to be maintained.]
We are informed. It's difficult to explain, but we feel it at the appropriate time and junction. Then we use the Station's systems to parse the information. It comes from somewhere deeper, but we aren't close enough to name its source for certain.
[There's something...uncomfortable in it, something about the lack of data that disturbs her. But that's the way it is; it's the way it always has been; if she wished to know an answer to such a question, it would require more of her than she can give if her place here is to be maintained.]
[ The verbalish smackdown isn't taken well on Steve's side. For all his determination there's still guilt for Ilde's part (his part) in Parker's murder. The Prince's voice picks at those scabs. Everyone linked to Parker would be having it ten times worse. A public shaming for them all wasn't needed.
There's no reason to knock this time, even with the door half shut. ]
( What about the others? ) [ An image of Anakin when he was in his coma, now awoken. An image of another closed pod, this person hasn't. The Prince hadn't explained the last time he asked what this was. ]
There's no reason to knock this time, even with the door half shut. ]
( What about the others? ) [ An image of Anakin when he was in his coma, now awoken. An image of another closed pod, this person hasn't. The Prince hadn't explained the last time he asked what this was. ]
[Steve's displeasure isn't hard to read, not with him pressing on the connection.
Prince doesn't care. They could dislike him, he would not die from it. But they would if they didn't take their responsibility to each other more seriously. This mission had been almost without danger. The next would not be. If they behaved as they had they would die, and he would be too far from them to do anything.]
Sometimes there are problems with the connection between a host and their symbiote. Typically time and rest will correct the issue, but sometimes it does not.
[It wasn't hopeless. It never was. But to come so far, to escape death as they had only to fall into some endless sleep- it was hardly satisfying. And there was no way of knowing who was susceptible, no pattern he had ever found. It happened, seemingly at random. Some were great losses, others were- less so.]
They will be safe here.
Prince doesn't care. They could dislike him, he would not die from it. But they would if they didn't take their responsibility to each other more seriously. This mission had been almost without danger. The next would not be. If they behaved as they had they would die, and he would be too far from them to do anything.]
Sometimes there are problems with the connection between a host and their symbiote. Typically time and rest will correct the issue, but sometimes it does not.
[It wasn't hopeless. It never was. But to come so far, to escape death as they had only to fall into some endless sleep- it was hardly satisfying. And there was no way of knowing who was susceptible, no pattern he had ever found. It happened, seemingly at random. Some were great losses, others were- less so.]
They will be safe here.
Edited 2016-04-28 06:13 (UTC)
He won't.
[ Hux had learned very quickly that trying to pull his rank over Kylo Ren meant absolutely nothing. It was infuriating to say the very least, but he supposes he's learned to work a little more creatively since Ren had been assigned to the Finalizer. ]
His loyalties originally lay with a powerful source where we're from. Coming here, he's found someone to replace that source, in their absence. [ From Leader Snoke to Cathaway. The idea behind both is the same, he thinks. Power. Validation. ]
It's why I brought up Cathaway. He's pledged his allegiance to her, for better or worse. If there's one thing that remains true, it's that he's not looking to disappoint whomever he's loyal to.
[ Even though he shifted from the First Order to this without so much as blinking. It still makes his skin crawl, just thinking of how fast it happened. ] He'll act under the impression that his decisions are a benefit and genuinely helping the cause. Occasionally, he misses the mark.
[ More than occasionally, but he's trying to be as nice as possible. Or rather, factual. This is what he's observed in the near year of working close quarters with him. ]
[ Hux had learned very quickly that trying to pull his rank over Kylo Ren meant absolutely nothing. It was infuriating to say the very least, but he supposes he's learned to work a little more creatively since Ren had been assigned to the Finalizer. ]
His loyalties originally lay with a powerful source where we're from. Coming here, he's found someone to replace that source, in their absence. [ From Leader Snoke to Cathaway. The idea behind both is the same, he thinks. Power. Validation. ]
It's why I brought up Cathaway. He's pledged his allegiance to her, for better or worse. If there's one thing that remains true, it's that he's not looking to disappoint whomever he's loyal to.
[ Even though he shifted from the First Order to this without so much as blinking. It still makes his skin crawl, just thinking of how fast it happened. ] He'll act under the impression that his decisions are a benefit and genuinely helping the cause. Occasionally, he misses the mark.
[ More than occasionally, but he's trying to be as nice as possible. Or rather, factual. This is what he's observed in the near year of working close quarters with him. ]
[ Cathaway had sort of confirmed the something similar when they spoke. He's not sure what he can do with the information though. Respect is one thing. It makes him uneasy that Ren - that anyone could be so easily held under someone else's sway like that, just because of the power they hold.
Reminds him too much of the state of things in Europe.
He goes silent for a moment, then : ]
Thanks. I'll keep that in mind. [ He doesn't mean to sound dismissive. The problem is, even with Cathaway as a buffer there's only so far he's going to get with Ren while the guy has no respect for him whatsoever. And if all Ren respects is power, Steve's not sure how this is going to go. A beat, and he inclines his chin at Hux. ] You talk to Cathaway since we've been back?
[ Wonders what he thinks of her. ]
Reminds him too much of the state of things in Europe.
He goes silent for a moment, then : ]
Thanks. I'll keep that in mind. [ He doesn't mean to sound dismissive. The problem is, even with Cathaway as a buffer there's only so far he's going to get with Ren while the guy has no respect for him whatsoever. And if all Ren respects is power, Steve's not sure how this is going to go. A beat, and he inclines his chin at Hux. ] You talk to Cathaway since we've been back?
[ Wonders what he thinks of her. ]
[ Vaguely, he can feel Steve's discomfort. It's easier to see in his posture, his expression. Hux can't offer anything to help alleviate it, considering the subject. He's had a hard enough time trying to get the Force-user to control himself and hasn't made much progress.
Certainly, things are a little easier now that he knows where to hit, but he really wish he had better tools at his disposal to head off the chaos before it started. ]
Of course. If all else fails– [ Well, he's willing to step between whomever Ren is trying to shred. So long as it's a nest member who is unprepared to deal with him. At the very least, he has a wary truce in place with Ren so they hopefully will both never push as hard as they did on Avera. ]
We've spoken. [ His expression goes a bit flinty, only relaxing as he pulls himself mentally away from his conversation with her. ] Did she seek you out as well?
Certainly, things are a little easier now that he knows where to hit, but he really wish he had better tools at his disposal to head off the chaos before it started. ]
Of course. If all else fails– [ Well, he's willing to step between whomever Ren is trying to shred. So long as it's a nest member who is unprepared to deal with him. At the very least, he has a wary truce in place with Ren so they hopefully will both never push as hard as they did on Avera. ]
We've spoken. [ His expression goes a bit flinty, only relaxing as he pulls himself mentally away from his conversation with her. ] Did she seek you out as well?
[ Steve doesn't intend to ever make Hux or anyone else stand between the two of them. He means to sort this out on his own, one way or another.
His gaze fixes on the shift in Hux's expression, there and gone before he can decide what it means. He nods. ]
She's a hard one to read. [ Worse than the Prince, in some ways. That man's a wall. Cathaway - she's a different sort of distant, a cold shiver down his spine. ] I guess she wanted our side of the story.
[ He figures she must've talked to more of them. Especially considering what happened to Parker... ]
His gaze fixes on the shift in Hux's expression, there and gone before he can decide what it means. He nods. ]
She's a hard one to read. [ Worse than the Prince, in some ways. That man's a wall. Cathaway - she's a different sort of distant, a cold shiver down his spine. ] I guess she wanted our side of the story.
[ He figures she must've talked to more of them. Especially considering what happened to Parker... ]
[ Cathaway is a different sort of distant. More purposeful with how she keeps herself from them. Prince, of course, keeps his walls up. But his process is something Hux feels like is more habit than anything else.
No, he's fairly sure his conversation with Cathaway involved her distancing as a way to show him the dynamics of the nest. To try and twist his arm. ]
She wanted assistance, when I spoke to her. [ Or cooperation, more than he was willing to give right now. ] Her mind is everywhere until it isn't. I don't believe she's very forgiving to those who want to put up walls.
No, he's fairly sure his conversation with Cathaway involved her distancing as a way to show him the dynamics of the nest. To try and twist his arm. ]
She wanted assistance, when I spoke to her. [ Or cooperation, more than he was willing to give right now. ] Her mind is everywhere until it isn't. I don't believe she's very forgiving to those who want to put up walls.
[ Side effects. He should've figured there'd be another catch. ]
( There's really nothing we can do for them? )
[ A fate like that, getting tucked away in those pods forever, is deeply disturbing to him. ]
( There's really nothing we can do for them? )
[ A fate like that, getting tucked away in those pods forever, is deeply disturbing to him. ]
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