[Week 2] Late late late evening 321

[breakaleginhalf]

[The voice that chimes in on the network is tired, and aching, and a whole host of other things Gil is very obviously holding back only tenuously.]

Someone needs... can someone go check on Matthew. Please. Liminal Space. He's...

[A long silence.]

...I dunno if he's-- he's not cavosophia. He's not. [It almost sounds more like he's reassuring himself.] But I-- ...Ghalib hurt him.

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[youandyoualone]

Ah.

Should we be looking for Ghalib's corpse, then?

[He's ASSUMING that someone lost their head and decided that murder was the best solution.]

[breakaleginhalf]

He's alive. I'm riding shotgun.

[It's hard to say which he sounds more disappointed by. He's too tired to even try and take a shot at Delaunay.]

Almost got torched. 's'more than the fuck deserves.

[fearinahandfulof]

Do you want to be separated from him?

[She's never talked to Gil before, but... well. She can do that.]

[breakaleginhalf]

I...

[He wants to say yes. He wants it so bad.]

...can you... come back to me on that one? Not sure yet.

[fearinahandfulof]

All right.

We... know to watch him, at least. Either way, I mean.

[breakaleginhalf]

I don't... I can't trust him, unsupervised. Look what fucking happens. [He's not angry at Cassandra, he's just making a tired, blunt point.] And if someone's gonna be stalking him anyway, might as well stay here and keep the closest eye on him possible.

[fearinahandfulof]

[She didn't think he was.]

But if they decide to kill him or otherwise punish him, that will fall on you as well.

[breakaleginhalf]

Dying is so much easier to handle than...

[Than living with the fact he tried turned two people he considered friends into mindless Stepford Slaves.]

...anything they wanna do to him, I can deal.

[fearinahandfulof]

I know. But that presumes they will kill him.

[breakaleginhalf]

If it's physical, I'm fine. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt.

If it's mental, I can just tap out. Let him deal with it.

[fearinahandfulof]

Unless they decide to hollow him.

[breakaleginhalf]

He deserves it.

[fearinahandfulof]

Maybe, but do you?

[breakaleginhalf]

[The long silence is probably telling.]

Shit happens.

[fearinahandfulof]

Yes, it does.

[You're not fooling her at all, Gil.]

[youandyoualone]

Ah. Well, that may prove useful, depending how much in control of the body you might be. If naught else, it puts you in a position to repair Ghalib's damage as much as you might, at least until Cabal disposes of him.

[Hi, Gil. Delaunay is done pretending in public that he's not a cold bastard. It only took two years.]

[breakaleginhalf]

[Luckily Gil already knew that about him, thanks to his dungeon and Thorne's breakdown on him.]

's'mine now. Not fucking giving it back if he's gonna try and attack more people.

But I dont... I dont know how to fix this. I can't just - take out the part where Ghalib fucked them up, it--you know it doesn't work like that you fuck, how long've you been you?

[That's a genuine question, despite his grievances. The last thing he knew, Delaunay was flirting with his sister. With Thorne. Goddamnit.]

[youandyoualone]

It has been roughly somewhere between a day and a half to two days since Naoki woke me up inside Anaf--although, being a Cabalist, Anaf is perfectly aware of my presence. We have come to something of an accord together.

And yes, I am aware it does not work like that. That is why I said 'as much as you might.' You're a creative man. You ought to think of something.

[breakaleginhalf]

Oh jesus christ of course you're a Cabalist, you shifty bastard. [There's not that much venom, to be fair.]

But, like-- I cannot mess with people's heads like that, okay? I don't have the skill or like. The ethical malfunction. And I don't know how to fix Ghalib slapping an ugly bandaid over people's inhibitions about leaving their ENTIRE PERSONHOOD exposed and vulnerable, man, j just. I can't.

[youandyoualone]

It was an apt choice of Infiltration, yes.

[He is a shifty bastard. He won't object to the name calling.

It's tempting to press at Gil to find a way anyway... but it clearly won't do any good to, given how upset the young man is, and truly, it isn't a bad thing that Gil himself is so very reluctant to interfere with anyone's minds.]

Well and so. I still think it is better you stay within Ghalib, if only to keep him from committing further evils.

[breakaleginhalf]

Yeah. That's the fucking plan. I dunno if anyone could...

[He has to pause, as a brief wave of nausea and guilt flickers in and out of life.]

...if anyone else could stop him, he's. A strong psychic. And a Magnator, he can just- boost himself.

[youandyoualone]

There is a reason his forefathers were able to rule for a thousand years.




... I suppose telling you that Cabal was planning to neutralize him once they had their united Vale will not help much.

[breakaleginhalf]

Not really, but Qabil seemed like he was ready to kill me anyway, he reaved me and found out I-- Ghalib did that. He was furious.

I don't...

[And then his attention focuses elsewhere with a sudden thread of alarm.]

--wait.

[youandyoualone]

Gil--?

[breakaleginhalf]

[Gil does not reply.

But he does, a minute later, yell..

And then he's gone.]