( 01 ) video.

[oversleeps]

[ when the feed clicks on, marduk is in what appears to be a ruined building near the edge of town. there's snow on the floor and holes in the walls, but he's not wearing a single scrap of winter clothing. more importantly, he doesn't look especially pleased to be doing this. ]

Recently, one of the locals here went missing. Don't ask me what his name was, I'm not the one who gives a shit. I'm just here to solve the mystery.

He's missing because he's dead, and he's dead because I killed him.

[ he pauses here. it looks like it's for dramatic effect, but really he's just trying to figure out how to end the announcement. ]

Most of you would call that murder, wouldn't you? Can't remember if you all figured out what to do about that, but-- if you want retribution, you can come and get it.

[ good enough. the video ends there. ]

Comments

[oversleeps]

None at all?

[ a beat. ] Don't tell me-- what, like, you don't even have sunrods? [ how can u live without magic flashlights, tempest ]

[hyanaimne]

None at all.

[she tilts her head, thinking for a moment, then shakes it] I do not think I've ever heard of those.

[oversleeps]

[ he clucks his tongue, disapproving. ]

No wonder everything interesting was myth to you. In a world that primitive, you don't exactly have much to work with.

[hyanaimne]

My world is not primitive. [she huffs] So what if I do not have much there?

[oversleeps]

Fine-- quaint, then. [ somehow, with his tone of voice, that hardly sounds any better. ] Just can't imagine living with so little. Run out of things to do, wouldn't you?

[hyanaimne]

No? I have never run out of things to do, anyway. [she shrugs a shoulder] There is always work.

[oversleeps]

Ah, but who has time for work? [ he laughs at that; god, he's funny. ] Sorry, but the more I hear, the gladder I am to be from my version of things.

[hyanaimne]

One must make a living somehow. Usually, people work for it.

[she rolls her eyes] And what do you do then, pray tell?

[oversleeps]

Kill people. [ to put it bluntly. she's already said as much about herself; why be coy about it? ] Whether or not that constitutes work is a matter of opinion.

[hyanaimne]

[dryly:]

If you were hired to do it, then it is work.

[oversleeps]

And if the hiring process isn't always involved?

[hyanaimne]

You would have to be a bit more specific, I think. "Killing people" is rather vague.

[oversleeps]

I thought it was rather explicit, actually.

[hyanaimne]

So, what, do you run about the countryside killing whomever you please?

[oversleeps]

Running sounds like a lot of effort.

[ and a pause? ] It's a byproduct of the life I choose to live. An accessory to it, if you will. But calling it work implies a certain level of seeking it out.

[hyanaimne]

[she raises both eyebrows, considering, then shrugs]

What a lazy thing you are, then.

[oversleeps]

[ he fakes a wince, holding back the laugh. clearly, her words cut deep tonight. ] Has anyone ever told you of your kindness?

[hyanaimne]

What kindness?

[she ain't even going to pretend]

[oversleeps]

That which you're so graciously showing me with your company.

[ it is not a very serious statement. ]

Duller than you would've hoped, though. Isn't it?

[hyanaimne]

[she would hope not; she doesn't want to give any false impressions]

You are a creature from stories I grew up reading; you are not all that boring.

[oversleeps]

[ his mouth twists a little at 'creature,' but the annoyance is passing; it could be so much worse. ]

Stories that you don't even remember. How does that work out in my favor, exactly?

[hyanaimne]

[don't feel too offended - she calls everything "creature", even humans]

I have continued to grace you with my kindness and company, have I not?

[oversleeps]

[ well tbf humans are gross tho ]

Certainly have. [ he pauses then, falling silent. he's still not sure how to feel about being a creature of myth, now that the initial wave of interest has passed; if only tempest remembered any of them.

this shit is going to bother him forever. ] You do this often? Hang about strange murderers you find on the network? [ because if so, girl, you need a real hobby. ]

[hyanaimne]

[she opens her mouth to answer his question, then pauses to actually think about it. Just how many people is it now? She isn't sure. It wasn't that she went looking for that type, but she seemed drawn to them all the same]

Not particularly. They just turn out that way down the road.

[oversleeps]

[ the fact that it gives her pause just makes his eyebrows raise. wow. ]

I wonder what that says about you.