Ky glanced at her, then away. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”
Why couldn’t she just keep her mouth shut?
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"No." Ada shook her head. "It's a good theory. I think it's valid." She gave a nod. "I can see it being true."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Was she calling herself harsh? Or did she think she fell in the excessively kind category? Ky didn’t know. But she tentatively nodded. “I have no evidence. But it’s what I’ve noticed.”
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"I bet if you mentioned it to your uncle he'd do some sort of study." She snorted. "If one hasn't already been done. I wouldn't be surprised."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“Mm… maybe.” Ky considered it for a moment. Would Gaius do something like that? She wasn’t sure. “I mean, maybe he’s noticed a greater pattern than I have. But I don’t think he’d do a proper study. That’d be dehumanizing. He doesn’t like dehumanizing former slaves.”
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
Ada nodded. "You're right about that. The others seem terrified of him but only because he's a noble. I don't think he'd do anything to harm them."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Ky nodded in agreement. “I was terrified when I first met him, but, like I said, he grows on you. He’s actually very compassionate towards innocent people.” The last three words were vital to making that a true statement.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"But not so compassionate towards guilty people." Ada thought, not for the first or last time, of the head of Gol Nasa sitting up on its pole. There had been a mixed reaction between her little group when they'd arrived. She and Pratik had been pleased, but Rickard seemed disturbed and generally uncomfortable .
Last edited by Ljungtroll on Wed Mar 23, 2022 2:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Ky cringed and nodded, though her mind flicked towards the prison. She still couldn’t comprehend someone having been imprisoned twice her lifetime. The singular night she’d spent in a dungeon was more than enough to last her a lifetime. It was so dark. So stinky. So hostile. So cold. Gods, probably especially here.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"What do you suppose he does to thieves?" Ada asked, brow furrowing. "If they're just stealing to eat? Do you think he's harsh with them?"
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Ky thought about it for a moment. “I doubt it. I feel like he’d work to correct the issue that led you to hunger, rather than punish you for it.” Unlike Builder. Fucker. “… I’m sure it would be a very different matter if you were stealing anything but food, though.” She shivered slightly.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"I guess I respect him for that. There are worse Lords out there." Like Tarr.
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“No doubt.” Ky nodded. She hesitated a long moment, thinking of the very first time she met him, before she was Tomhas’s daughter. She’d been terrified of him then — and she’d been under Tomhas’s protection even then, regardless. But, then, she’d been mid-lie with full knowledge that he was seeing straight through her. And had Aleth breathing down her neck.
And she’d been frightened at the thought of getting sent to him, back when spying had been on the table. But, again, that was her actively putting herself— well, getting put — squarely on his shit list from the start. She didn’t really have a good gauge how she would have viewed him as peasant or a neutral freed slave. “I guess I can’t really separate him being my uncle from being a Lord, but my impression is he’s generally fair. And treats you accordingly to whichever extreme your situation pushed you.”
As kind to Rickard as he deserved. And as cruel to the cannibal as he… well, no one deserved that. But. Well. If anyone did, it would be him.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"That's a good quality. Not too weak or too cruel--just right for dealing with crime and justice. They're sticky issues, but I guess I'd want Lord Ash in my corner if I did something a little wrong."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“For sure. I certainly wouldn’t want him against me.” Ky shivered slightly. How close she’d come.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
