:Fuck!: Kalilah swore, her Aegis ripping at the Masque around her as she whirled, energy swirling within her. She was ready to completely destroy this place, but she didn't want to have to. Your eyes went to Vega, begging for an answer.
:I've got nothing,: the Harmonial replied, and you could literally feel the pressure of her Focus as she tried to exert it without letting it stray beyond her body. :Lea, is Mandy alright?:
You could've answered that!
:No you can't,: Lea told you, not harshly, but very firmly. :But I think you're fine. It was a reaction, one you had to be truly distracted to slip on, but we've all been that way recently.: You felt the sound of a sigh. :We all knew this was a risk.:
:Then why aren't there guards flooding in here?: Mir asked. At least no one else had to ask that now. :Not that I'm complaining, but the sim crashing can't exactly be common. And-:
He cut off as the wall where you'd entered swam like water, then flowed back into a door. A Shiplord was standing there. You recognised their shell, that of your guide, but her entire manner was wrong. Kicha was staring at you, but the reactions pulsing along her nanoshell were ones of shock and realisation, but no anger. No rage for intruders into this most sacred - it was a fair term - of places. That… was unexpected.
It was also the only thing holding Kalilah back from murdering her.
Kicha stepped inside, light as a feather and just as vulnerable to a stiff breeze, and the door swam back into being a wall.
She made a small gesture, and the basic simulation reonlined.
"Shiplords are capable of ending their lives whenever we want to, once we understand the concept," she said, preempting any questions. "It's like a euthanasia switch. We use it when our world has gone on too long, if we don't wish to try sleeping for a few thousand years."
Another gesture, careful, so careful, and something flickered up on your virtual display.
"I just gave you control of mine," she said, with all appearance of total calm. "Call it a token of… you call it faith, I think. That you might be able to help us."
It took you a moment for you to realise that she'd said 'faith' in perfect English. It was all you could do not to reel back, and the implications of what Kicha had given you were too much to prevent that. Kicha-- the entire species had the ability to create a suicide switch, and Kicha had just given you hers?
"I've disabled any recording systems," she continued. "And purged the system crash, though not the historical profile your actions created. I may need to modify some aspects of your sim-access later, if you let me have one."
You just stared. Wasn't she meant to be your enemy?
But enemies, you told yourself, are always easiest to handle when they're faceless. Was this a ploy? Some kind of trick whilst they tried to find the Adamant, or blew the entire site from orbit using the guns of the ancient dreadnought above?
:It's not.: Mir said, with absolute certainty. :There is no war in her being. No expectation of sacrifice. She wants peace, Mandy. I can't begin to describe how much she wants it.:
:It's strong enough to form a Focus, if she were human,: Vega agreed softly.
:So...we try?: You asked tentatively.
:Not sure we have much choice,: Kalilah growled. :But I'm staying ready until we know for sure.:
Ready to kill her, you knew. Not that you could blame Kalilah, especially after your mistake and her own experience.
But where to even begin?
[] Why are you doing this?
[] What do you mean, help us?
[] Who are you, really?
[] Kill her and leave Amanda says no
[] Write-in?
