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[cobbledtogetherenvy]

[No recording. Envy doesn't want to talk to any stupid humans.]

Comments

private, backdated [cw self harm]

[a_titanum]

In the interest of halting any possible revenge cycles, if you have the desire to kill me for having killed you, I would be willing to kill myself such that you can have the satisfaction of my death and a week of suffering but without any possible repercussions to you or to what relationship you may still have with Johann.

I have no interest in ruining what friendship you have with him. Nor in continued hostilities.

private;

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

If I cared, I wouldn't have walked into the really obvious trap. Try to have a plan for the door next time. It's little stuff like that that gets people's hackles up.

Re: private;

[a_titanum]

Of course.

[ He had a plan but why show your hand if you don't have to? Underestimation is his favorite, even if it doesn't work as well on the Barge. ]

I did not think so, but better the question asked and answered.

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

So if you don't care about Johann mixing with me, what exactly am I supposed to not do?

[It was handy in the moment and doesn't matter long term, but on balance, he'd rather not die again. Without a better reason. At the moment.]

[a_titanum]

I killed you for my convenience, just as I died for yours. It was not your job to keep Johann's promises for him. We had not even met before then. My only concern is that you don't kill me, for the aforementioned reason.

Though your insides are interesting.

I have no intention of meddling with them, but there are certain similarities to Johann's physiology and certain large differences.

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

I think he's a lot more like Greed or Lust. There's a human in the raw materials somewhere.

[a_titanum]

I suspect so. Plenty of dead bodies have been thrown into the water. I would not think the goddess would discard all the easily assembled material.

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

Depends what we're for, too. My youngest brother's mostly human, and I think the second Greed, too, but they're both for a very specific purpose. And pathetic.

[a_titanum]

That makes sense. What manner of creature are you and the others? Are you all named as such?

Greed, Lust, Envy, the other pathetic one?

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

We're Father's failings excised and made useful.

[He rolls his eyes so hard it hurts.]

I don't know how the older ones were put together. Just guess. My younger brothers... Sloth's a glorified chimera. Gluttony's made from the same gate I tried to open on deck. It closes about as soon as it opens when he uses it. He got me with it by accident once. Dimwit.

[a_titanum]

To be fair, I think most people consider themselves their parent's attempts at excising part of themselves in a useful way.

Your world has mages, then?

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

Alchemists. And the other one, I forget what they're called. Humans are better at the everyday stuff than we are, honestly, but they can't learn enough in their little lives and tiny spheres to accomplish much.

[a_titanum]

I expect not. I have not heard of alchemy being able to create beings like yourself in my world. Magic, certainly, but mages are not even supposed to live past infancy, let alone learn anything these days.

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

What people think is supposed to happen and what actually happens don't have much to do with each other. Ask your average person where I'm from, homunculi and philosopher's stones are both myths.

[a_titanum]

Yes, well, you are speaking to a mage. That was how I killed you.

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

[He is too tired to have the "alchemy isn't magic" argument again.]

Least painful way I've ever died, thanks.

[a_titanum]

[ Oh, he wasn't arguing that. But he is the impossible thing in his own universe, that's all. ]

I was hoping so.

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

It was a useful time to do it, too. I had something I needed to test. So if anything, I owe you the favor.

[a_titanum]

I am not charitable enough not to accept that.

May I ask what you were testing?

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

Short version is the gate didn't open the way it should have, and I had to tap my stone to activate the circle. I wanted to know if the depletion was permanent.

[a_titanum]

From what I understand, death resets one to the state one came to this place in. My hair was dyed before I died and has since returned to its straw color.

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

I know that's how it's supposed to work, but...

[He should probably keep this to himself, but he's not an alchemist. He can do alchemy, some of it pretty advanced, but he doesn't have the real depth of training. Never needed it. He's not good at thinking this way.]

Philosopher's stones are made with the energy from human souls. The more people you pour in, the stronger. Two or three for the ordinary stones we let out sometimes. Thousands for something like one of us.

[a_titanum]

I do not know your alchemy, but I would posit that the energy used to open the portal was ultimately captured by the Barge and or the Admiral, and thus could be reapplied to you upon your death. Energy cannot be created or destroyed, after all. Merely moved around. And from all evidence, the Barge is something of a closed system most of the time.

[ Someone's been reading a lot of science books donated by people while he's down in Zero. ]

[cobbledtogetherenvy]

That's what happened to the human batteries I tried to use. The barge grabbed them before I could use them. It's bad technique, anyway. I should have used them to build a stone and tapped that. But what I used to open the gate? It's still gone.

[a_titanum]

Interesting.

So you are permanently depleted by that action?

[ This is not the curiosity of an enemy but someone finding out something fascinating. ]