light_mischief | [sail] inbox

[Skulduggery is aimlessly pulling at a slot machine, ensuring that there's a consistent ringing even among the noise and lights that normally fill the casino. he tilts his head at her arrival, not quite a nod, but at least some form of acknowledgment.]

Lucky for you, I don't sleep. What is it that you need to talk about?

The same thing everyone's doubtlessly talking to you about. That contraption with its distress call flying away from this place, and what it could mean when it leaves this demiplane.

[she folds her arms, uncertain of what else to do with them.]

I'll be blunt, since time is precious. Whatever the hells is out there, whatever decides to respond, we need as much firepower as possible to meet it. And we need those with the resolve to kill them, should they be less than charitable. I have that, as well as a decent bit of power that longs for destruction.

[they, the entire ship's population, needs as much weaponry as they can get. and Fever knows for certain that she can be a weapon.

and to address the djinn-shaped elephant in the room:]

I've no love for the Captain. He can die in a ditch for all I care, for how much I despise being trapped in this place away from what I need to do. But he deserves the freedom to find that ditch to die in, and I'd put my body on the line for that.

Edited 2024-01-14 23:54 (UTC)

I take it you're another one of us poor idiots who "doesn't believe in goodness," then. [the Sahara is less dry than his tone as he cribs from Ari's texts.] Good to know some people still have their senses about them.

[he yanks down on the slot's lever, hard enough that he has to force it back into place as the slots spin.]

We have a good deal of powerful people on the ship who don't agree with the Tradeliner way of doing things. You and me, for one. Valdis is both a god and seems personally invested in the Captain's safety. Flan will do what she can to protect Sparkles, and I trust that she has more power up her sleeves than she's already shown. Hell, Maximilien has a few guns that would put a dent in a Faceless One. Not to mention the combined tactical knowledge of several war veterans from different eras and universes, as well as the input of two highly trained spies...

[he tilts his head to look at her.]

Of course, for all we know, that satellite could be floating untouched for decades, centuries even, without ever being found.

Wouldn't that be a merciful act of fate. Though I hope you'll forgive me if I say if I have to spend centuries here I'm going to find a way to rearrange my sense of perceiving time so I forget what a year is.

[she presses on her temple, rubbing it and briefly closing her eyes to try and make the headache that wants to flare up back off. steady. she already resolved she wasn't going to rat anyone out, even if she'll fight tooth and nail and blood and bone to ensure no one was throwing anyone into enslavement. the threat of what would happen if that note got found is still very, very real.]

Speaking of gods, Sheogorath's fond of me, so I think I can talk him around if he's not already inclined. [which. she knows he is. but it's all for show.] And that new woman who drifted in from the Village, Nyx. She's the sort to not quit until you kill her. Point is, there are more hands to join the fight when it comes than you may have thought.

[she knows she's made no secret of her associations with Tayrey in the past - the ship's small enough, and she's been seen in the Tradeliner's company. but you don't call someone up in the middle of the night to place yourself on the table as an asset if there's not something you disagree with fundamentally.

her hands yanking off the armor of Order, piece by piece, to free the person trapped within.]

I believe in goodness, even in the most wretched places. I also believe that a barrier is built for a reason, and whether or not I know the precise reason, it's still true by definition. Magic like this doesn't come from nothing.

[they'd be out before then, but he doesn't bother pointing it out.]

This place is proof enough that goodness exists everywhere. But you're right -- those barriers are there to keep us hidden from the wider reality out there. The reason why we haven't simply offloaded the people who want to leave so badly is that they can't be trusted to keep the Captain's existence to themselves... and there are many things out there that would benefit from owning someone as powerful as the Captain.

[he wonders how the mutineers would feel, seeing the Captain trembling in fear at their actions. probably pretty good about themselves, he imagines. he hopes they all choke on the void.]

How much do you know about him? The Captain, I mean. And why he built this place to begin with?

I know he's a djinn, if that's what you mean. Formerly subservient to masters. I know that this place keeps him from those who'd want their claws on him.

[so, the absolute basics, but enough of the basics to know and understand that putting him back at someone else's beck and call is not an option to consider, even if she wants a way out.]

Not much about him as a person, though. The information conflicts, and finding the truth of any of that...well, I can't complain about not knowing if I haven't done anything to try and fix that gap in my knowledge.

[she knows she hasn't gone to try to see the Captain, to try to know him. her anger at the situation's kept her from that, but it's not as though she'll make it his problem that she chose to occupy herself otherwise.]

You aren't the only one. Not many passengers have bothered talking to him. The ones who managed to interest him and keep it civil will tell you that he's a sardonic, arrogant comedian. Which is mostly true... after all, jinn do love their tricks and games.

[His jinn does, anyway.]

He built this place to hide himself from those who would enslave him, yes. Also to find a way to permanently free himself. He... there are still claws in him, even now. [He doesn't mention the cuff directly, not wanting to put more information out there than is already available. Flan knows about it, and she's sure to tell anyone interested about it, but his metaphorical lips are sealed.] If he were truly free, they all would be gone by now. But we couldn't risk letting anyone go. Even if we freed every person on this ship, there are enough people who hate the Captain for pulling them from time that he'd never be safe. So. Everyone stayed here. And while it wasn't safe... it was secure.

[he pulls the slot's lever again.]

And now it's neither of those things.

[there's a quirk of her lips upwards - those aren't negative traits in a person, in her view, but she'll let Skulduggery keep talking. and it really is something akin to the vague idea she'd had, that it wasn't about a straightforward imprisonment and sadism but something more complicated. even letting people go into a world without magic to try and skirt the powerful forces - well, she remembers what Arthur said. magic being hidden in his world, bargaining with other entities. bitterness leads a lot of people down twisted paths.

now, here they are, and she supposes she's fortunate indeed that he doesn't know her magic was all over the rocket, that she'd helped tweak and attune it to bolster Rita's spells. but there's a thoughtful look in her eyes, and she leans against a machine, idly pushing the buttons.]

Those claws in him. What would it take to dislodge them?

[she's not asking as a metaphor, her expression says. Skulduggery has every reason to protect his lover's sensitive information, including the nature of his magical bindings. but hells, it doesn't hurt to ask.]

Edited 2024-01-18 02:46 (UTC)

[As if Skulduggery has anything against his lover being an arrogant wiseass with a planet-sized ego.]

That would be the multi-billion-dollar question. The reason why this whole place was constructed. [He looks Fever up and down, and makes a few calculations based on how much he wants to share versus how little time there may be left to share it. He knows so little about the woman who fought him over the edge of the balconies a few months ago; she may very well have played a part in the mutineers' plot, or she may simply be on their side. This could all be a ploy in some form or fashion.]

...There's a cuff on his wrist. He removed the first without help, but with far too high a cost. The other one won't come off without an equal amount of power. We've been trying to find loopholes. Ways to twist the original spirit of the rules. But of course, the sort of magic used to own a person is notoriously difficult to manipulate.

If we get the cuff off, the Captain is freed. But until then, anyone can come in here and take him from me. You might see why I'm particularly upset about this whole debacle.

Of course.

[there's a softening in her face, her posture. damn. if she had known about this sooner, she could have come to him in a very different light than trying to subtly pass on a warning, than preparing for the inevitable fight. it's that same feeling that had sent her chasing ghosts, to break a curse that she could have left alone. it wasn't her problem, and yet, who else would handle it, when others had tried and failed?

she has a suspicion she's drawing close to something that'll draw her in, but like a dog spotting prey in the distance, she's already here. already breaking into a metaphorical run.]

Is it a matter of raw power, or some kind of exchange? I know we're getting a bit diverted, but... [she shrugs her shoulders.] Sorceress.

[give her a magic problem, and watch the wheels spin. though, the tiny pause is for another reason. Skulduggery is putting a portion of his heart on the table, and so she'll respond in kind.]

...That, and my dearest friend was enslaved for centuries. You can imagine that anyone kept in chains brings his face to mind.

Edited 2024-01-23 01:10 (UTC)

Likewise. As far as we know now? It's power. [he's questioned before if it could be as simple as taking and immediately divesting ownership of the Captain, but he doesn't know enough about the binding magic involved. the risk is too great to entertain the thought.] It was an explosion the first time, but one that hasn't been replicated.

[the admission in turn helps restructure the mental file Skulduggery has of Fever, the conversation as a whole providing a different light to read it by. their meeting would have likely gone better under better circumstances, as proven by the way this one's already gone.]

It looks like we've got two things in common, then. Seems to be difficult to find a solid antagonist on this blasted ship these days... [his tone makes that clear it's a joke, even if it's kinda true]

We could always still fight where other people can see and give you a public enemy who's determined to break you into two hundred and six parts.

[you know, giving him a nemesis on the clock. let his allies have someone they want to destroy - it's been a while since she walked into a place and was hated on principle. it'd be almost familiar.]

If it's power, though? I mean, brute forcing your way through isn't a bad plan, it's just not as though there's a large energy source to tap just hanging around or notes we could reverse engineer into a counterspell. Or some way to disrupt magic via external interference...

[blocking the connection just long enough to have him wiggle out or something. but the man's been around for a long time, she's probably just throwing out thoughts he already has mulled over.]

Call me crazy, but might it be possible to twist the spell so that he's his own master? Unless there's some stipulation that the one binding and the one bound can't be the same person, or it'll make him explode, or something. Which is bad.

Edited 2024-01-25 04:02 (UTC)

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