lifenet | Speech Stones

[ Ah. ]

I doubt being so openly hostile will appeal to them.

Openly hostile is how I operate. Eventually it pisses someone off enough that they do engage just to make it stop.

Besides, it's deserved.

Hey, hey dude? What's your fucking deal? That was the fucking PSA line, kids could've heard that, asshole! [Mainly one kid who happens to think the Storyteller is a good bunny!!]

My comment was more kid appropriate than yours.

And for the sake of one kid, it's necessary.

Oh darn, I should've realized kids are super gonna get nightmares about my dirty mouth, and not the whole like, beating the Storyteller to death with their own bones thing! Also! Nobody else can hear this, dipshit, because I'm a good person.

How's it necessary to put the rabbit on fucking blast like that anyway?

Yeah? What'd they do this time?

Opened up that new island.

What kind of world do you live in that kids are that sheltered?

And very few people would call me a good person, and I'm well aware of the fact. And don't care. Being a "good person" is often highly subjective.

Because he's the one in charge here. When you're in charge you have specific duties to the people you look over. He seriously failed in the most basic one.

[Boy howdy, he's one of those. Lup's hissing intake of breath is audible, like she's settling in for a long and thankless job.]

First off, not a he? Get with the times, dude. Second, I'm guessing you haven't been around long. Or you'd know they're kinda, they're not exactly top shelf, as far as gods go? They're pretty much as prone to fuckin up as everybody else around here.

Doesn't matter how "top shelf" you are. If you're the one in charge of people, no matter how big that group of people is, your job is to protect them. You family, you community group, your country. Doesn't matter.

[He might be revealing a bit more about his heritage than he wants, but whatever.]

Oh for sure. Like, that's the dream I guess. [Maybe not super realistic, but having ideals, she gets that. Protecting your people, that's her jam.] What made you think they're in charge, though? Like, they gave us options, we made a choice, it turned out to be a shitty nightmare choice for assholes. Lemme tell you, having the choice at all is a fucking luxury? And I'm pretty proud of them for not fucking that part up.

I mean sure, if they weren't basically running on empty, maybe they coulda seen this shitshow coming, but again, kinda a shitty god? They did help us bail everybody out, anyway.

There's a difference between real choices and being given choices that are only actually manipulation. If you're given choices, but all of them are bad given your situation, that doesn't truly count as being given a choice. Same goes for being given choices without being given all of the information. Both of those things are manipulation.

[Take it from someone who has had to make those types of choices his entire life.]

What says the Storyteller isn't? Other than his word? He isn't bound by the same rules we are and has the ability to control at least some of what goes on here. That says you're in charge, at least to a certain extent.

Okay, are you being a jackass about the Storyteller on purpose or just cuz you're stupid? T h e y are a shapeshifting god, that should kiiinda make it obvious they're not a dude! [And maybe the rabbit doesn't care how they're referred to, but she kinda gives a shit about these things.]

Listen, I'm into what you're saying about choices? That all tracks. But like, if we start being suspicious assholes about their word, we might as well throw the whole thing into the toilet. We'd never get any shit done around here! Trust me, I know how much it stinks to give them the benefit of the doubt. Like, way more than you, if you're new. But we gotta-- right now, they're our best shot at getting off this dumb plane, we gotta work with em. This is their world, they got some power here even if it's not super extensive, and they're willing to use it to help us. Anyway if all the islands are bad, you could just stay home, y'know? They're not making us go anywhere these days. [Yes, that wasn't always the case and yes, she will be forever salty about that.]

I could go with asshole, idiot, fluffy butt, or hey you if you'd rather.

[Now he's being a jackass. It's not like he isn't used to people going by different names than what others would normally use. He doesn't go by "man" after all.]

Titana rael you're either a complete minsid idiot or the most naive fool ever. You're asking to get stabbed in the back. Trust like that is a load of crap, and when you really believe it, it hurts that much more when someone turns on you. And they will. Everyone does. The only way you keep living is by being suspicious.

[That's why he didn't go to the new island in the first place. He's suspicious of everything, and especially someone that's supposedly "helping."]

[Excuse her as she has a hearty laugh over some chucklefuck trying to lecture her about survival. Walk a couple hundred years in her shoes and then get back to her, bucko. Stabbed in the back, that's fuckin cute.]

Shit, who dropped you as a baby and stole your lollipops? That's some like, hardcore edgy truths you're laying down here, darling. Anyway listen, I'm not gonna try to change your mind? I've got way better shit to do with my life. All I'm sayin is, I think it's smarter to work with the being "in charge" - for whatever bargain-bin definition of that - than against them. Maybe they're full of shit, and maybe I'm gonna eat my bro's hat one day, but-- Having a say in what happens, in what they do? That's a chance I'd be a real fool to pass up.

If you're interesting in the facts from somebody who's been here since the fucking start of this stank ass island vacay, hit me up. Otherwise, next time you feel like ripping the rabbit a new one, go yell at em in the temple, okay? Don't blow up everyone's Stones, for fuck's sake, that's not what I li-te-ral-ly invented them for. They're probably not even listening to this channel, dumbass.

[Ah yes, he's used to this. Everyone sees what they want to see. The actual truth doesn't matter. He's lived his entire life with people seeing him the way they want to see him and assuming his life has been if not wonderful, at least tolerable. While he wasn't young by Andarion standards, he wouldn't be considered old either, yet he'd dealt with more than most Andarions did in their multi-century lifetimes.]

Someone would have had to have been willing to touch me as a baby to pick me up and drop me. Not that they didn't think about it, I'm sure. Be glad you've lived under people who you can trust enough to "work under them." Hell, beyond trusting them that you can tolerate your name being attached to theirs.

Oh, well, if that's not what they're invented for I guess I should just stop. On second though, why the hell would I?

[Congratulations, now that he knows this pisses you off you might be getting some random "blow up" messages just to piss you off further. Poke the lorina, man...]

[Man this dude's a riot. Lup snorts at his overdramatic baby bullshit, though at his "threat" there's a definite sharp edge to her amusement.]

Cuz I'm gonna break into your house and shove it up your ass if you don't?

[Too bad none of it is bullshit. In fact, he's not even being overly dramatic. That actually happened.]

Hey, if you have a death wish go ahead. I could use the entertainment.

[His home isn't totally booby trapped, but nobody is getting in there if they don't have telekinesis of some kind or another.]

[She does have a variety of spells at her disposal, so her chances might not be the worst.]

Cool, me too! What's your address, homie?

[Or she can just punch him whenever she runs into him.]

A piece of shit rock on a dumb ass island.

[Well, she could try. He's had enough of that in his life that now that he has abilities to stop it he keeps them at quick disposal. Invisible force fields are amazing.]

Jeez.

What crawled up your ass and died?

I don't like seeing innocent kids suffer. Especially when it's not their fault.

Oh.

[ He pauses for a bit. Yeah, he...can definitely agree on that.]

But-- that wasn't them.

The Storyteller offered a choice. A forced, manipulated choice. That holds him responsible.

Ah--okay. Look, dude- [ Buckle in, children, this is Serious Mode Magnus.]

First, Storyteller ain't a he. So, huh, keep that in mind. You know, don't be an ass and stuff.

As far as the other shit goes,I'm not, huh, you know, I don't think I really understand everything that's going on in this place. But I think it's a lot more complicated than just, "oh, this super powerful thing just wants to fuck us all over until we all die forever".

You know might not know me, and I might not know you, but, trust me. I've been around the block, seen some-- crazyass shit in my day, and sometimes even things- even so called "gods" aren't the most powerful thing around.

Just, you know, I get it. I get that you're pissed and *why* you're pissed, but it's probably better to just...you know, work together and try to find a solution instead of, oh, I don't know, threatening horrific violence over a public network that doesn't even reach the person you're anchorin' to hurt?

I'm always an ass. In fact, sometimes I question whether my name is Asshole instead of Jullien given the number of times people refer to me that way.

I don't give a shit whether our fuzzy-assed rabbit [See, you didn't want to call him a he] is a god or not. That's where all of you are missing the fucking boat. If you put yourself out as the leader of people, which fuzz butt has, then you're responsible for what happens after you offer them choices, especially when only some information is handed out about those choices. That's something a shit leader does, and trust me, that's something I know about all too damn well.

I'm tired of all this "work together" shit you're all spewing too. Don't go crying when someone in your group turns on you. Being naive is all great and wonderful until it fucks you over. You better be hoping the first time is small.

[ Magnus takes a beat to respond. It's clear that the channel is still on, is the sound of nearby shuffling and what sounds like a dog sniffing at the stone for a couple of seconds is anything to go by.

It's just that Jullien hit a couple of spots, there, causing Magnus to think about a myriad of things the other man has no way of knowing about.

A couple of seconds pass, before Magnus sighs.]

Hey, Jul-- [ He hesitates, but only for a second.] Jullien. Listen.

You know the parte about me not knowing you and you not knowing me? Yeah, well, I'm gonna tell you this once. Me, and my friends, we've all been through some whimsical tornado of straight up bullshit, and I know all of that stuff- we know all of that stuff.

You do whatever you want out here. Nobody's gonna stop you. But I'll tell you this. Running around, yelling about how everyone's out to get everyone, threatening to hurt people and fight shit you don't understand, because everyone else is wrong and naive?

That shit don't work, bud. That's gonna end with you, alone, fighting stuff you didn't take the time to understand, without anyone there to help.

If that's what you wanna do, that's your prerogative. But, trust me, nothing good comes out of thinking everyone's out to get you.

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