The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance (also fuck you Loni and co.)

[empress_without_a_throne]

[Well, someone's back at the Unity Group bases... though her return's kinda dour on account of all the bullshit that just happened.  And the newly-returned DuskBird's already showing a godawful amount of damage on account of Loni's breakout.]

I wish my return would've been a happier, less bloody occasion.  Needless to say though, SolSavior is ready to fight again though... and I apologize for the... 'deception' that was spread regarding the DawnBird.  Initially creating it had been the plan, but partway through a better alternative had been found in using a regulator, and thus it became a project to develop the 'QuasArmor'.  I didn't know myself until the design was nearly complete, and ultimately it was decided to continue as if the DuskBird were to be replaced.  We were hoping Sara and the Indalph would think us vulnerable and attack, and that suspicion proved true.

But now though...

Anyone who wants to loose Loni and his friends on the world is a danger to everyone.  And considering what happened to Commander Antov... diplomacy won't get us anywhere with them.  Not anymore.

Comments

[star_of_sad]

[Setsuko looks at Mizuki for a longer while, judging her words.

Finally - no verbal reaction. She just nods.]

[majestic_keiki]

It kind of seems like there's more to it than that...

[empress_without_a_throne]

No doubt. But whoever... whatever their benefactor is, we can't let them get what they want.

[majestic_keiki]

Right...Hopefully we have some intelligence of our own who can figure out some more about them.

[As she talks, it's clear that Kei is even more subdued than usual.]

[empress_without_a_throne]

[She gets one in return,along with a brief flash of a smile.]

It hasn't been a good time for us, has it?

[empress_without_a_throne]

Hopefully...

[And yes. Mizuki's picking up on that signal.]

Is there something else though on your mind?

[majestic_keiki]

Did you hear about yesterday after coming back?

[empress_without_a_throne]

I heard of what happened with the Kijin Emperor... or at least what I thought was all of it.

... There's more beyond just Seta's death, isn't there?

[majestic_keiki]

She was begging us to kill her. Jen tried, Izuru stopped her and we just stood there watching.

[empress_without_a_throne]

She actually tried-

[Her heart was probably in the right place, but the same could be said of Izuru's.]

... How did she die then? Was it Izuru?

[majestic_keiki]

Astara shot her. If not either Jen had tried again or...

[empress_without_a_throne]

Someone would've had to.

[She'll leave it at that.]

That doesn't make it any easier to bear though.

[star_of_sad]

No.

Not at all.

[majestic_keiki]

[Kei just nods briefly.]

...Ren died last week as well. And now the commander. It's like last summer.

[empress_without_a_throne]

Victories sometimes come easy, sometimes at a price. And sometimes that price is so steep it doesn't even feel like you won anything...

They're not going to get away with this. I can promise you that.

[empress_without_a_throne]

... Still, we're here. We're here because Commander Antov was... able to do what he did.

I didn't have any doubts that my own efforts to stop that final attack would be... token at best. But the Commander... he saved everyone.

I can only hope whoever replaces him has even half of the strength he was able to show.

[actuallyselfish]

"...why couldn't you tell us?" Dido blurts out in frustration, slumping against a wall. "Ken and I aren't freaking Watsons, you know! We can act! We can keep bloody secrets...!"

Looking closer, you notice bags under her eyes. "You could have trusted us..." She mumbles.

[empress_without_a_throne]

I know, and I'm sorry. But I didn't find out until us before leaving, and the fewer people that knew, the better. We were dealing with Sara, after all, and thanks to her thinking Solaris was vulnerable the Indalph are down another general and we've made new allies.

... But that doesn't make up for what we lost afterwards, does it?

[So yeah. So much for a victory high.]

[star_of_sad]

Commander in chief... he wasn't even a pilot. That was his first time in a cockpit, and then that happened.

He really was trying his best. And, considering everything - I think he saved us all.

Not just this one time.

[actuallyselfish]

Dido quirks her mouth. "New allies...gods, that SolEraser gang had some freaking Chutzpah! Sabotaging the Indalph war effort from behind the scenes! Holding back just enough so that we could grow stronger!"

She rubs at her chin. "How are they doing? Do you think they've recovered enough that they could take visitors?"

[empress_without_a_throne]

They're still pretty weak. Parasites will do that to you, and even if they weren't Sol beings, they got blasted by plenty of Void energy all the same. We can't even more them from Solaris HQ just yet.

But they should be able to recover, with some rest. And I definitely would like to hear what they have to say.

[actuallyselfish]

"Particularly how we can put a stop to the Indalph's invasions." Dido says.


She goes pale suddenly. "Do you think we made their 'deaths' convincing enough? If Sarah learns they're alive..."

And now here face goes dark, and she clenches her fists at her side. "Holding a planet hostage to coral a single person...what a freaking ego trip."

[majestic_keiki]

Right. [Kei pulls herself together again.]

And...It's good to have you back.