成歩堂 龍ノ介 (Ryūnosuke Naruhodō) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
locumstudentesquire) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
aionchat2022-08-28 06:36 pm
locumstudentesquire) wrote in aionchat2022-08-28 06:36 pm
Entry tags:
To the Pleroma, a few days after the raid
[After speaking with Yuya, Ryunosuke suspects this message may not be well received by some. Maybe it's simply not the right time... But if not now, then when? He can't keep sitting on this information.
After pacing restlessly in his quarters and fretting over his decision, he resolves to take the plunge. A deep breath, and a quick slap to the face later, he pulls his shard out, closes his eyes, and focuses, his spirit reaching out to all the other Pleroma across the communion.]
This is Naruhodo speaking. I... I have some important information to share. And I hope that you'll all indulge me a moment to speak. I considered waiting a bit to relay this information, but after everything that has happened...
[There's a wavering emotion on his end, deeply mournful and angry. It's a righteous anger; the restless sort that won't allow him to sit idly by while evil still sits atop its thorny throne, content to think that it's won the day. He hardens his heart, thinking of that, and plunges ahead:]
Before our infiltration of Achamoth, Sakaki-kun and I were able to... To speak with the Innocence once more. I know many of you may think that ill-advised, and I don't disagree; it was a risk, to be certain. But I considered it a necessary one, because whatever that thing is... Whoever she is... It's been abundantly clear for some time now that she has far more knowledge of this world, more knowledge of the Regent and their plans, than any other source we've been able to tap into so far. The Innocence constituted a lead that I couldn't ignore, and I... I don't regret following that lead. I hope some of you will agree, once you hear what I've to say.
The Innocence can be difficult to speak to, but there can be little doubt about what it imparted at the end of our discussion. The truth we all need to be aware of is this: the Regent's strength, their power, the force that will lead them to realizing their goal of destruction on a cosmological scale: it's despair. Literally, our misery feeds them. It makes them stronger.
Perhaps that's not surprising to hear, given what we already know of the Kenoma, but please consider the implications: Horos's entire history, particularly the last hundred years... The suffering caused by the Regent's tyrannical rule; it's not just the behavior of a despot, typical as it may be for leaders of similar ilk. No, everything they've done in the past... From the suffering they continue to cause to the civilians of Horos, to the way in which they continue to bait us and antagonize us, instead of letting us live in peace... It's all a means to an end! The ultimate end! The Regent mistreats the people here and spreads misery across the land simply because breaking souls and leading them to despair literally gives them strength.
[His anger has intensified, a bright flame burning at the center of the cloud of grief enshrouding his heart.]
I am not asking you to forgo mourning. I am not telling you that you should not ever feel pain, or sadness. Gods know I've had my share of both. But I implore you: grieve, but do not wallow in it. If you feel yourself slipping into despair, be defiant. Remind yourself that it's exactly what the Regent wants. And if you can't do that on your own, reach out. We must come together and support each other through this.
...Yuya and I suspect that this truth about the Regent is what drove the Innocence to spread its touch around Horos as she did, back on the moon of Inoseri. She felt the suffering of the Horosians, of the Venerans particular, and saw how their misery gave that bastard strength. That's why she infected the people with apathy as she did, to interrupt the thing that was feeding the Regent power. Horos suffers, and so the Regent grows ever closer to winning. The Innocence sought to ease the people's pain, I think largely out of compassion but-- but also, to buy time. Time enough for us to fight back and avert the destruction.
[He knows this has been running long. Assuming anyone is even listening... There's something he's taken away from all this, and it's the point he wants to drive home.]
As long as one of us still holds hope, the Regent cannot win. The Innocence's methods were deeply flawed, but... She had the right idea, in some sense. Which brings us to the heart of the matter, the thing I wish for you to take away from this more than anything else:
The people of Horos need hope. Going forward, if we can give it to them, if we can help them to fight back against the Regent's rule... I suspect we will take away the very thing that makes the Regent strong. And if that's true, we CAN beat them. I'm certain of it. We have a new advantage now, knowledge that we didn't have before. We can use that to direct our efforts. We can start truly fighting back.
We can prove to them that hope never truly fades.
[Gods. Alright, maybe he's... Gone a bit overboard with all this, but what's said is said. He's not going to regret it. He'll just leave things there. In real life, he lets out a long, shaky breath, coming down from his defiant fervor.]
Now, if you have questions... Go ahead and ask. I'll answer what I can. And perhaps Sakaki-kun can help, if he's willing.
[ooc note: the intent is for this information to also be shared at the Pleroma council that will be taking place next month, so no worries if your character is not in a state to listen in on this message! The info will still get around without you needing to sit through Ryunosuke's inspirational speech efforts.]
After pacing restlessly in his quarters and fretting over his decision, he resolves to take the plunge. A deep breath, and a quick slap to the face later, he pulls his shard out, closes his eyes, and focuses, his spirit reaching out to all the other Pleroma across the communion.]
This is Naruhodo speaking. I... I have some important information to share. And I hope that you'll all indulge me a moment to speak. I considered waiting a bit to relay this information, but after everything that has happened...
[There's a wavering emotion on his end, deeply mournful and angry. It's a righteous anger; the restless sort that won't allow him to sit idly by while evil still sits atop its thorny throne, content to think that it's won the day. He hardens his heart, thinking of that, and plunges ahead:]
Before our infiltration of Achamoth, Sakaki-kun and I were able to... To speak with the Innocence once more. I know many of you may think that ill-advised, and I don't disagree; it was a risk, to be certain. But I considered it a necessary one, because whatever that thing is... Whoever she is... It's been abundantly clear for some time now that she has far more knowledge of this world, more knowledge of the Regent and their plans, than any other source we've been able to tap into so far. The Innocence constituted a lead that I couldn't ignore, and I... I don't regret following that lead. I hope some of you will agree, once you hear what I've to say.
The Innocence can be difficult to speak to, but there can be little doubt about what it imparted at the end of our discussion. The truth we all need to be aware of is this: the Regent's strength, their power, the force that will lead them to realizing their goal of destruction on a cosmological scale: it's despair. Literally, our misery feeds them. It makes them stronger.
Perhaps that's not surprising to hear, given what we already know of the Kenoma, but please consider the implications: Horos's entire history, particularly the last hundred years... The suffering caused by the Regent's tyrannical rule; it's not just the behavior of a despot, typical as it may be for leaders of similar ilk. No, everything they've done in the past... From the suffering they continue to cause to the civilians of Horos, to the way in which they continue to bait us and antagonize us, instead of letting us live in peace... It's all a means to an end! The ultimate end! The Regent mistreats the people here and spreads misery across the land simply because breaking souls and leading them to despair literally gives them strength.
[His anger has intensified, a bright flame burning at the center of the cloud of grief enshrouding his heart.]
I am not asking you to forgo mourning. I am not telling you that you should not ever feel pain, or sadness. Gods know I've had my share of both. But I implore you: grieve, but do not wallow in it. If you feel yourself slipping into despair, be defiant. Remind yourself that it's exactly what the Regent wants. And if you can't do that on your own, reach out. We must come together and support each other through this.
...Yuya and I suspect that this truth about the Regent is what drove the Innocence to spread its touch around Horos as she did, back on the moon of Inoseri. She felt the suffering of the Horosians, of the Venerans particular, and saw how their misery gave that bastard strength. That's why she infected the people with apathy as she did, to interrupt the thing that was feeding the Regent power. Horos suffers, and so the Regent grows ever closer to winning. The Innocence sought to ease the people's pain, I think largely out of compassion but-- but also, to buy time. Time enough for us to fight back and avert the destruction.
[He knows this has been running long. Assuming anyone is even listening... There's something he's taken away from all this, and it's the point he wants to drive home.]
As long as one of us still holds hope, the Regent cannot win. The Innocence's methods were deeply flawed, but... She had the right idea, in some sense. Which brings us to the heart of the matter, the thing I wish for you to take away from this more than anything else:
The people of Horos need hope. Going forward, if we can give it to them, if we can help them to fight back against the Regent's rule... I suspect we will take away the very thing that makes the Regent strong. And if that's true, we CAN beat them. I'm certain of it. We have a new advantage now, knowledge that we didn't have before. We can use that to direct our efforts. We can start truly fighting back.
We can prove to them that hope never truly fades.
[Gods. Alright, maybe he's... Gone a bit overboard with all this, but what's said is said. He's not going to regret it. He'll just leave things there. In real life, he lets out a long, shaky breath, coming down from his defiant fervor.]
Now, if you have questions... Go ahead and ask. I'll answer what I can. And perhaps Sakaki-kun can help, if he's willing.
[ooc note: the intent is for this information to also be shared at the Pleroma council that will be taking place next month, so no worries if your character is not in a state to listen in on this message! The info will still get around without you needing to sit through Ryunosuke's inspirational speech efforts.]
no subject
Her curiosity shrivels and is replaced by something that burns. Something that isn't-]
The people need hope? The Regent cannot prevail as long as people hope?
[As usual, her communion attempts are marred with an uncontrolled bleed-through of jumbled memory and emotion, flashes of something dark and far more befitting the kenoma than the pleroma, of bloody rain and a hail of scales, of pain.]
To think that you would be blinder than I am with a single eye... You are far stupider than I imagined, Ptarmigan.
[Why has she even bothered to be disappointed?]
no subject
...So shocking that you would think that. Care to elaborate on why?
[Despite his sarcasm, he makes no attempt to shut her down or shut her out, because... He can feel her pain. He can feel how precarious she is right now, and that scares him more than anything she actually says.
Being nice or polite has never worked on her before, but she's clearly in need of someone. He's going to help her whether she likes it or not.]
no subject
[Of course he needs an explanation. Of course he doesn't understand. What sort of sweet life had this idiot led, that he can spout such ideals and think it constitutes fighting back?]
Let me make it simple for you. Hope is something people feel when they're foolish enough to believe in things that will never be a reality. It's a condolence. And having it doesn't do a gods damned thing.
no subject
[He remains resolute. He doesn't soften. But the way he says her name intimates understanding, and it carries with it a candid glimpse into his own heart... To the chasm of pain and grief that's been torn open there.
Whether he means to share it or not is immaterial. What matters is that it spotlights one inarguable fact: They are both mourning deeply the loss of the very same person.]
I am not suggesting that we merely have faith and hope for the best. I am saying that hope, despair... In this world, they hold tangible power, as... As much as fire, or the wind!
[He's echoing similar lines, he realizes, to things he has said in the past while discussing the Pleroma and Kenoma. They're like essential elements.]
It's not mere sentiment. Inspiring the people to resist and fight back... It can have real, tangible impact! I've long wondered why a leader who claims to abhor the ills of the world would have such a heavy hand in causing more of the same suffering, well, this, this is the answer! It directly benefits them, and not just in an abstract sense! The Regent, the Kenoma-- they feed on making the people suffer!
[Maybe he's making some leaps of logic here, but it FEELS right as he says it. He's so damn sure he's on the right track here. This is what the Innocence was warning them of.]
no subject
But Hayame doesn't feel that's true at all, and it makes her own emotions flare up in a biter, caustic wall.]
You expect people to believe that hope is tangible? Can you eat hope when you are starving? Can you sleep on it when your bed is hard? Can you warm yourself by it when you cannot light a fire?
[... It's communion, but. The mental equivalent of spitting on the ground? It happens.]
Who the hell do you think you'll save by making them hope for things? The only thing hope births for most people is disappointment.
no subject
[Yuya isn't feeling very full of hope himself, but he feels he owes Ryunosuke to at least listen and provide any facts he has. And this is... actually, something he has experienced.]
You've heard what happened to the first of us, right? When we were taken to the cave and fed that goo. When we were escaping, there was--some kind of energy, that felt like it bolstered our hope of getting out and it gave us power. So we were stronger and faster, and that feeling... it was part of it. It felt like more than just my emotions.
It's a part of the Pleroma and Kenoma. The actual force, not us Aions. And the Regent is using despair as a weapon to make us weaker and them stronger.
no subject
But more importantly,]
Was I talking to you?
no subject
... no response. Not even a flare up of emotion to preempt any sort of acknowledgement or retaliation.
He agreed to support Ryunosuke by sharing the things he's learned. To affirming what Ryunosuke has learned. Information. Not convince people.]
no subject
Even if that's true, [said with the heavy implication that he doesn't think it is,] so what?
[He lets that hang there a moment. Watches, feels for her reaction.]
Will you just give up? I was under the impression that you were made of sterner stuff than that.
no subject
Look me in the eye and tell me I have given up.
[Just the one. It’s not like she’s told him, or anyone really, but the left side of her (his?) face burns with pain.]
I just do not need hope to live, like some filly dreaming in the night.
no subject
...Meaning, 'no', you won't give up. You just take issue with the terminology.
[Despite the dark edge to her message, he seems... Relieved, in some small way, to know that there's still fight left in her yet. And now the scope of this conversation has narrowed. This is no longer about Horos. It's about Hayame.]
If YOU don't want to believe that things can be better, then that's fine. You don't have to agree with me. All that matters is that you hold on to the will to live, and fight another day. Do not let despair take hold of you.
no subject
But she isn’t about to tell anyone that. Let alone this man, now, when he’s spouting drivel like this.]
And you do not try and lecture me as if you know for sure the truth of this gods forsaken world none of us belong to. Else when we meet next in person, you’ll have to actually account for this sudden bit of spine you’ve grown.
If anything, I can show you what hope truly does.
no subject
[Easy, Ryunosuke... Don't lose your cool...]
It's as I said: you can either believe me or not. I'm not forcing you to agree. But even if my information turns out to be completely unsound, inspiring resistance among the Horosians can and will make a difference towards bringing down the Regent, and this gives us even more of a reason to try. You do want to defeat the Regent, don't you?
no subject
[Every time she wants to believe people just come back with this nonsense. Hope? Hope?]
What I want has nothing to do with what’s possible. This group can’t even save two people without losing [one] a half dozen in the process, and you want to inspire the populace?
With what? Our great deeds and glorious victories in battle?
When the Regent tightens his fist over those people, and they die, what will you tell them? Have hope, please?
no subject
He hasn't been thinking about the collateral damage and civilian deaths, though. Even if her question is an important one. And that puts him off his stride. He doesn't want to think about the inevitable deaths, he just wants to find something, some tiny little lead to grab on to, that will help lift him out of this grief-fueled rut he's been rotting in.
And what does she want? For someone to prove her wrong? To vent her own frustrations by beating him back down, since he dares to try and stand up?]
...I don't know. [He says it with a bit of a growl. Does that help? To hear him admit that he doesn't have all the answers yet?] Would ANYONE know what to say, in a situation like that? I doubt you'll find anyone equipped to answer. What I do know is that having hope isn't the same as having blind faith. It's about resilience. It's about pressing on, even if the fight looks hopeless. You're a warrior, are you not? Surely you can appreciate what I mean.
no subject
Not as much as him calling her a warrior, but-]
The tell them it is about resilience.
[That's a word that can be stomached.]
And struggle. And suffering, too.
[She cannot imagine a victory in this place without it.]