peakfan | PC | Fei Du

[ fei du's thumbs blur over the keys for a moment, as he's typing and adding all of these details to the notes. ]

I see. Did you catch how the employee was killed?

It was very likely not poison.

[ so dryly ]

Otherwise, there was no sign of injury we could find in that timeframe.

[ there's a noise that's a completely mirthless one note laugh. ]

That's fine. Thank you.

[ he finishes his notes and locks his phone, and goes silent again, staring back out at the lake. the music continues, very softly. you raise me up, so i can stand on mountains. ]

[ he internally fist pumps at getting at least a minor laugh. score one for this old man. ]

You are quite welcome.

[ they stand in silence for a while then. sqq, more than happy to drift contently for a minute and-

bluescreen but oops fei du probably misses that

-and enjoy the atmosphere before returning to business ]

[ HELP THE BLUESCREEN

him too, man. just maybe less literally? who knows. ]

If you hear anything from the others, feel free to pass it on.

[ sometimes you just vibe so hard you leave your body for a few minutes ]

Of course.

[ does fei du want to hear his phone go off with a message? because he can. sqq will frown at it intensely and look like he wants to toss the phone directly into the lake again ]

[ he glances up

and raises an eyebrow. ]

Something the matter?

[ he hesitates only for a moment but fei du also went on cyoa already so ]

Are you aware of the messages being sent after one goes on ah... these weekly jaunts?

[ ah. ]

- Yes. Did you get one?

[ he sure as fuck did. the :nyeh: face says everything ]

Would you like to read it?

Please.

[ he holds out his hand. ]

it looks like they're really going for world erasure. they're really stubborn that way, aren't they? at least the winner can use their points to also bring others back to the realground, but i'm afraid i don't really think they'd be able to save too many unless they really work for it with how much it costs. what a shame, isn't it? i hope this group won't be anti-violence.

[ his stank face is so strong. he's gonna show this mysterious message his anti-violence ]

[ for the first time, fei du has a visible reaction that isn't just some kind of numbness: his eyes go slightly wide, brows nearly jumping off of his forehead.

... ]

... This is - have you seen the other messages?

[ score two for the old man! anyway. that's a helpless shrug ]

I was only told to inform someone if a message were to occur.

[ looks at this looks at the last trial, wheezes

fei du makes a little noise, and pulls up his phone. ]

... Will you send me yours? Here. This is what I received, last week.

[ and he'll forward sqq a message. ]

FW:
Bring them from different worlds. Erase worlds of those who fail to win. This will be a better system for the future.

So... they're chronological.

[ lmao ]

....... I see. So our worlds too are indeed relying on us.

[ despite the way his heart immediately lodges into his throat he certainly sounds like he's chill as ever. maybe even a little ice cold. ]

[ lmao!!! fei du is smiling, but it's not a nice smile. ]

The two messages go together. Anyone who has seen my message - if they're rash enough, they may act. Seeing yours could reinforce it. And, we have no way of knowing who's winning, right now, either.

[ cool!!! great!!! just what they need!!!! ]

Asking for cooperation to insure the survival of our worlds is surely bound to fail as well. It all relies on the winning team to know and act on the fact that there is far more at stake than the revival of themselves and the players of this game.

Precisely.

[ lmao ]

It relies on the goodness of humanity, in some ways. In the chance to make a choice. And in reading yours, I wonder - if we do end up reaching that cooperation, teacher Shen, it may have to result in a lot more death.

[ lmao ]

I suppose one way to speed things up greatly is to remove people from the bottom teams up.

[ sqq your team is (on) the bottom. YEAH, HE KNOWS ACTUALLY. look at the sheer stank face he's making ]

[ haha team bottom

that was inappropriate im sorry ]

Maybe. [ but, his heart breaks, as he thinks about shenhe, instead. ] I'll tell you, I don't have any intentions of killing anyone, teacher Shen. Not now, and not ever.

[ crying ]

Mm, yes this one feels similar. [ like, outside special circumstances but fei du doesn't have to know that. sqq will at least give him a tired weary smile ] Neither of us truly belongs in a game like this, do we? Though some also would say, perhaps we are the best suited for it.

[ he smiles back, but his is - it's not a very nice smile. it's not aimed at shen qingqiu, at least, but his eyes are dark. there's something about fei du's expression here that's as sharp as a knife. ]

...No. I'd say I'm right where I should be, teacher Shen. When you spend your time around tigers, you learn how to wear their stripes.

[ but, he meant it - he has no plans of killing anyone. these two statements coexist in perfect harmony. that's the kind of person fei du is; some of his behaviors at trials, the way he acts, might start to click into place. be the bad guy. be scary. be objective. be cold.

take the blame before his teammate confesses, so the world looks at him as vicious, when in reality, he just wanted a scared girl to feel like she didn't have to be a monster when every person in the trial was treating her like one. ]

[ my.... is this what looking in the mirror is like? he may not be the scum villain the original was, but the way people look at him, expecting it, certainly resonates suddenly.

he isn't as good at it as fei du, his heart is too soft against injustice but it is still something he is intimately familiar with. thus his smile turns up with far more understanding than he would ever express out loud ]

Ah... yes. One must confess being out of practice but even an old tiger is still a predator.

[ he's quiet for a moment with that, the look vanishing in an instant - like it was never there, as it melts easily into a more polite smile. ]

I don't think you're that old. [ lightly, at first. maybe it's a joke? ] But, I think I understand.

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peakfan - 2023-07-10 20:21 (UTC) - Expand