Derik eyed him. They were quickly getting into forbidden territory. “Someone far above me.” He should probably send her a letter, too, come to think of it. She would know what to do in this situation.
"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]
"Mm." Gaius studied him for a moment. "I'd very much like to meet this person, someday."
"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
“Perhaps,” Derik said non-commitally. “I’m sure Zander has probably already reached out to them regarding this mess I stumbled into… however I took an oath of secrecy, so I can’t say much about the structure or participants of… well, there’s not much I can say on the topic at all. I’m already pushing my luck using it in front of you anyhow.” He was fairly certain Guild Master would understand and forgive him for the trespass. He wasn’t supposed to, though.
"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'm sure I'll find out eventually." He shrugged. It would be his priority directly following his study of the trolls and gods. "Why were you not informed of Ky's whereabouts before?"
"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
“Secrets can’t be shared if they’re not known.” Derik shrugged, then hesitated, realizing it sounded like Zander didn’t trust him. That’s not at all what he meant. “… Zander is responsible for the security of many members of our family. My responsibility is Jerica. This child— Kylia— was charged to the farmer. I never met him and he never met me. He knew nothing of Jerica and I know nothing of his girl. It’s safer to separate things so that the whole network doesn’t collapse even if one of the links is weaker than thought. Only Zander and the Elders know the whereabouts of the others.”
(Bruh I’m at work and I’m struggling so hard ;-; my brain has decided we are simply done with training and now I’m trying to figure out how to kill the last 21 minutes before I can go home without looking like the world’s biggest slacker since this is only day three but erghhhh I don’t wanna be here)(too bad I didn’t act on my intrusive thought at 5:30 this morning to quit my job so I wouldn’t have to wake up xP)
"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]
"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
(Thanks! I survived. Now shoe shopping for my uniform… which I don’t love… but is SO much better. I’ve been assigned several hundred pages of training and it’s so boring)(legit had to read the Job Hazard Analysis sheet telling me the dangers of a paper laminator -_- )
“…Two,” Derik said after a moment. He needed to drive this conversation. He took a deep breath then offered, “…In my country, there is both a monarchy and a Council. The monarchy functions like any other does, but if the 12 councilmen are unanimous in their decision, they can overturn the decision of the Crown. It was meant to be a system of checks and balances to prevent corruption… until the Council itself has become corrupt.” Derik sighed. “Jerica and Kylia and their two sisters are quadruplets… the Council decided they fit the bill for this stupid, archaic, nonsense ““Prophecy”” and ordered them executed hours after birth. Zander and I didn’t like that. So we brought them to the mainland to hide and protect them… we had been doing a good job of it. Less so in recent years.”
"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 narrowed it down considerably; Gaius knew what country they were from now. He'd peruse the library later. "So I see. What will you do now that you've found Ky?"
"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
“…I don’t know.” He sighed, looking at Ash warily. “I’d say the ball’s in your court now. Are you going to keep your mouth shut; or are you going to go poking around trying to figure out who we are? I need an honest answer from you. She will die if she stays here and you do. They’re still looking for her. And they’ve got ears everywhere. If you start asking questions, they’re going to come with the force of hell behind them.”
"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 have an idea of who you are after what you've told me," Gaius replied honestly. "I can't promise I won't try to satisfy my curiosity, but the girl needs stability. I suppose I can keep my thirst for knowledge at bay until she's safe."
"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
Derik didn’t like that answer at all. That sounded like a man who’d go digging for answers the moment Derik turned around. He was silent for a long moment. “You do realize that the instant the Council links her to you, she can never come back here again, right? I don’t care if it’s tomorrow or five years from now. If the Council links you to her, they’re going to have this place watched until they catch her or she dies from old age. They’re stubborn bastards who haven’t eased up in fifteen years. They’re not going to stop once she turns eighteen or twenty or whatever other age you’ve got in your mind for when she doesn’t need stability anymore.”
"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]
"Who says she'll ever be mentioned?" Gaius asked. "I'm not an idiot. My interests are purely in this skill you've shown me--and the trading prospects associated with that country. I know you have exports that would interest me, and I'm sure some of my own products would be of interest to the king and the Council."
"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
“Oh my god.” Derik rubbed his face in exasperation. “I have no idea what the child looks like. Are you telling me there is no resemblance between her and the rest of our family? That if someone knows me and Zander and then glances at the child they’re not going to at least wonder if there’s a connection there? Especially when they learn she’s 15 and adopted?”
"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]
"They won't see her," he retorted. "She's my niece, not my daughter. She'll be with Tomhas."
"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
“Where is she now?” Derik challenged. “If you open yourself to business to them, you open yourself to surprise visits. And do you think they’ll travel all the way up here to see you without trying to dive into the purse of other nobles along the way? No chance at all they wouldn’t stop by your brother’s on the way?”
"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]
