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[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

Correspondence

voice ✦ text ✦ in-person

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[epistemological]

[ He shouldn’t. This is a bad idea. ]

I used to believe that. I don’t now.

[audio]

A few people have had to adjust since I went back to- to live statements. I was on written files for some time.

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

[ well if this isn't delightful. Elias' voice is tinged with pleasure at the switch to audio. ]

Sensible, to make the change. You have a lot of power, Jon. Given your position on this ship, there would eventually have been someone else who'd realise there were ways to take advantage of it. And you.

[epistemological]

My position?

[ A soft snort. ]

I’m a warden. Half the population here most of the time.

I didn’t exactly spread your little trick around, after all.

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

[ Disbelieve him all you like, Elias sounds as though he firmly believes everything he says. ]

I've been here under a month and I'm already well acquainted with a number of inmates who've developed a deep loathing of you. You do have quite a skill for raising the ire of people who wish take out their frustration in... creative ways.

[epistemological]

You managed to come in during a particularly... awkward period.

Not that I should have expected anything else.

[ A soft sigh. ]

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

I'll get my warden to ask for me to be sent back for a few months until it's a better time for you, shall I?

[epistemological]

[ A little quieter. ]

I never imagined I'd see you here. Never in my wildest dreams.

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

There aren't all that many examples of redemption stories for the man who gave the world over to dread powers of Fear.

[ He's surprised as well, though he'd never say as much. ]

[epistemological]

No, it's-

I just-

[ A small swallow. ]

I can't imagine you-

The idea that you died-

I-I-I'm not trying to push your nose in it, it's just-

It doesn't feel real.

[ Quietly- ]

I'm on the deck.

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

[ There are a number of comments Elias could make about that, beginning with it felt very real and only getting more sarcastic.

He refrains. He's aware of exactly how tenuous his connection to the Archivist is here, and while he's intimately familiar with the various strings that can be pulled to try to manipulate him, he isn't in a rush to squander the pensive mood Jon seems to be in. ]

Picking up old bad habits again, hm?

[ he means the smoking rather than the telling things sincerely to the man who would happily throw you to the wolves. ]

[epistemological]

[ He knew, even as a child, that his grandmother had no interest in him. That she resented his presence. Just like he knows that Elias hates him, and before he hated him, he didn't see him as anything more than a means to an end. And yet- ]

Hardly all that 'bad' when it's not going to kill me.

[ That's not a no. ]

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

[ Amused: ] You're setting a poor example for those of us still bound by mortality.

[epistemological]

Am I?

[ A soft chuckle. ]

Is that a good thing or a bad thing for an archivist?

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

It's quite tame, next to some of the things Gertrude got up to.

... I am rather disappointed I missed her.

[epistemological]

She would have blown you up.

[ Very sure of that. ]

She was on the edge of it anyway.

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

Oh, she would have taken full advantage of my current state to blind me and ensure that even if I did ever make it back, my connection to the Eye would be permanently severed.

[ He sounds almost fond at the thought of it. You can't help but admire the ruthlessness of the woman. ]

I can't see even Tim attempting that.

[epistemological]

We’re all wardens. And that’s not-

You’re still an inmate. Whatever else you are.

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

Gertrude was, first and foremost, dedicated to stopping the influence of the Powers. And I am currently still very much aligned with the Eye, Jon.

[epistemological]

I realize that. I’m the one who had to tell her what happened, after all.

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

How did she take it?

[ He probably can't hide the trace of hunger in his voice from Jon. This he wants to know. ]

[epistemological]

She-

[ And he stops. ]

Come up. I'll tell you in person.

[ He's learned a few things. Not many, but a few. Like not to give away things without at least getting something you want out of it, if not everything. ]

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

Ah-- [ Elias sighs, sounding more pleased than anything else. ]

Of course. I'll be only a moment.

[ It's more than a moment, of course. Elias isn't sure this isn't a trap-- loathes that he can't know for certain it isn't. But it's unlikely, unless Martin is involved in the background. He had turned out to be much more of a devious thinker than expected, while Jon-- dear, straightforward Jon-- ]

You've learned not to simply give your hand away, Archivist. I'm impressed.

[epistemological]

I try not to make the same mistakes more than... a few times.

[ He doesn't look at Elias, he looks out into the space around them, into the darkness and the stars between. He smokes his cigarette for a moment before he finally turns. ]

And my former inmate taught me a few things. Thankfully.

[ A soft chuckle. ]

She probably would have done something horrible to you, so it's for the best that she's graduated.

[extendedbrutalpipemurder]

[ Elias reaches into one of the inner pockets in his jacket, pulling out a small cigarette case. Hypocrisy? He doesn't know the meaning of the word. ]

If only I had the words to express my gratitude. Alas.

[epistemological]

[ Despite seemingly trying not to look at him (odd, given his request to get him up here), he has his lighter still out and he'll offer a light once the man has his cigarette in place. ]

You would have liked her. She reminded me of Gertrude in a way.

[ He's quiet for a moment. A long moment. ]

There is a part of me, you know. That... longs. To work with you. To gain your approval. That still can't let go of the fact that you... chose me for a higher position.

I hate it. But it's there.