02 . text

[systemize]

[The comm tag reads Stormer and is untraceable.]

Someone asked me recently how I'd define moral and immoral, but I think my perspective's a little skewed. How do you define it?


> private to Magicman
I need to ask you for a favor. Do they have you listed as an adult here? I wasn't sure what your official age would be.

> private to Isaac
I think I have your software finished. I can send you the file to download and you can check if it needs troubleshooting.

Comments

is reanimated by nanites in order to make more typos probably. fml

[abduxel]

I'm a janitor at the De Chima Cathedral, St. Paul's. It's good, relaxing work. The Pastor and I are excellent friends. And there's something so satisfying about cleaning up dirty floors. It's like I'm washing away scuff-marks and sins.

[Of course, he's got a shit-eating grin. Besides the fact that Cadel might catch on to some other reasons that's ridiculous, Abduxel also spent about 60% of his intro post openly complaining about how this job assignment has to be a joke. Also fwiw he's literally never showed up to this job.]

I had to check that you didn't edit that because of typos XD

[systemize]

[Cadel doesn't have evidence that he's never shown up, but he's pretty innately suspicious. Thankfully he's already established himself in Abduxel's mind as kind of a jaded character, so he doesn't have to pretend he's stupid.

Secretly he's also wondering if that means holy things don't effect him at all, or whether they effect him a lot. It seems like it should be one or the other.]

Uh-huh. And what have you actually been doing? I can't believe you'd use all your freedom here to scrub floors.

ye of little faith

[abduxel]

Why, can't believe someone could just take pleasure in an honest day's work?

I've been thinking a little on right and wrong, myself. It's an interesting slice of people selected here to be heros, that's all I'm saying.

should I have faith...

[systemize]

I can believe it, but it seems too boring for you.

You mean you're questioning Lachesis's criteria? I wouldn't be surprised if a god-like being, if that's what she is, has an inhuman concept of morality. Or maybe we're misunderstanding her intention entirely. Maybe she's not trying to bring in heroes-- that's all government publicity.

[abduxel]

I go out and get myself in trouble after-hours only, like every other gainfully employed American citizen.

[Somewhere, an eagle caws in the distance.]

[He seems less jovial on the topic of Lachesis.]

Yeah, I read that thing you showed me. The one that says the Porter is fate itself. I was happier to believe it was some trigger-happy government hoping to send us off to war with Ruskies, to be honest with you: slimy, simple, typical human motives. Better the Devil you know than the Devil you don't.

[Kind of literally.]

[systemize]

[That's the information Cadel wants, what he's doing 'after hours', but he knows better than to ask directly. Who would just hand out answers like that?] Been doing a lot of legal drinking?

I'm not sure I buy that it's fate itself. That's a pretty powerful name to take, though, so it's obviously significant. Maybe she thinks she's serving a grander purpose. I'd rather deal with human motives, too. At least I'm familiar with their sliminess.

[abduxel]

Yeah, somehow it being legal takes half the fun out of it, doesn't it? Well. I guess you wouldn't know.

[He shrugs.] Seems far-fetched, but then so does being imPorted. Whatever, maybe she just grabbed the most interesting people she could find. Hm, I wonder if kidnapping could ever be considered moral under extreme circumstances?

[systemize]

I don't really associate legality with fun or not fun, no.

No, it couldn't. Not unless you didn't have enough time to explain the situation to them, and you were taking them for their own protection, just until you could explain. [Cadel's been kidnapped way too many times to see any shade of grey in it. But more than that, Sonja's been kidnapped in order to manipulate him more than once, and he finds that utterly unforgivable.] But kidnapping in our situation is indentured servitude at best.

[abduxel]

[He laughs.] I meant because you aren't legal to drink anyway. Come on, taboo adds a little spice to everything.

[He taps his fingers on his chin, thinking.] Mm, what if we really are going to save the world, though? If fate has some higher purpose for us?

[systemize]

Not for me it doesn't. I've done plenty of taboo things already, thanks.

Even if that's the case, just because it's necessary doesn't mean it's right.

[abduxel]

So you have had some fun.

Now that's an interesting distinction: necessary and right. Can you really have one without the other? How can someone's actions be wrong if they are necessary? Could you go to Hell for something that was necessary, do you think?

[systemize]

It really wasn't. You have to enjoy it for it to be fun.

[Cadel's a little alarmed by this question, and ducks out of any religious discussion as fast as possible.]

I wouldn't know anything about hell. I'm not religious. But of course it's possible to do something wrong that's necessary. If it ends up with someone uninvolved getting hurt, but you still had to do it to prevent greater problems, that qualifies. Just like you can do unnecessary rights all the time-- people can be kind that way.

[abduxel]

[Fine Cadel, don't have fun ever, see if he cares.]

What kind of taboo things have you gotten up to, exactly? Unless you just mean attending college while underage. [He waves a hand - boring.]

Where do you get your moral compass, if not from religion, then? It wasn't from your parents, you said.

How about this: Is it right to punish someone for doing a necessary wrong?

[systemize]

[He has to pick something taboo that is consistent with his present character, which is not exactly law-abiding but overall unthreatening to Abduxel's plans. Which means he doesn't want to say that he'd gone around in disguise. The trouble is that much of those are things he's ashamed about, like running Partner Post, an online scam.] I made it so my entire graduating high school class failed their final exams except for me. I hated them.

There's a friend of mine I rely on. But mostly I'm making it up as I go, which is why I posted. I'm not sure I'm up to answering a question like that yet. I don't even know if it benefits from being put in such absolute terms. Reparations, sure, but maybe not punishment.

[abduxel]

[He grins.] Now there's an enterprising solution. I suppose now you'd say that was morally wrong of you. Obviously, it wasn't necessary, either. But maybe they deserved it. Did they? Would you do it again?

Everything ends up absolute eventually.

[systemize]

They probably did deserve it - teenagers are awful people, really - but no, I wouldn't do it again. If you don't give someone a chance to be less awful, they never will. Most adults aren't that bad, so they grow out of it at some point.

Because you're dead? That's not exactly useful in the short term.

[abduxel]

[He shrugs.] I guess what I'm saying is that the short term doesn't really matter when you get down to it.

[systemize]

Yes, it does. It really does.

Haven't you ever heard "it's not the destination, it's the journey"?

[abduxel]

[Dismissively,] Saying it doesn't make it true.

[systemize]

Saying it's not true doesn't make that the case either.

[abduxel]

Then I guess we're at a stalemate.

If you ask me, making it up as we go is all you can ever do, and the pieces are just going to fall where they do regardless. It's out of our hands, it's above us. That's why I think it doesn't matter.

[systemize]

[He disagrees so strongly (that's just a slippery way to get out of having to take responsibility for anything, it's cowardly) but this is infringing on religious territory that he wants to stay well away from. Still, Cadel has to balance his outward "Stormer" personality with his desire to keep Abduxel well disposed toward him. He can't satisfy both.

Good thing he's good at this.]

I don't think anyone wants to believe what they do doesn't matter. Though it's a little philosophical to discuss, I guess.

[abduxel]

[Abduxel is nothing if not a responsibility-shirking coward, really, but he's also just a touch bitter, to say the least.]

Why would it matter?

[He says it plainly; like really, he wants to know.]

[systemize]

If this is the only time we have, doesn't it matter more?

[That's a bit trite and disingenuous. Cadel really wants to say that you can't look at someone you've hurt or gotten killed in the face and be able to convince yourself it doesn't matter. Just like he can't look at Sonja's circumstances and how every tiny thing that makes her life easier is a huge, world-changing improvement to her, doesn't matter.

But it's too personal. And he doesn't mind if he comes off as naive to Abduxel. That suits his purposes.]

[abduxel]

I guess that's a matter of perspective. [His tone is beginning to fall flatter.] You'll see when you're older, kid.