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[latkje]

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[trueltning_fury]

Oh? [with a finger tapping idly against his mug] Then you'd best tell it, I suppose. I could use an interesting story to liven things up.

[and maybe gain a little insight, if that's where Nash is going with his hints]

[latkje]

Mmm, well. There was a lot of complicated stuff you don't have to worry about , but suffice to say I had to escape from the prison under the fort here. [ As you do. ] They'd just put some First Class incompetent in charge, and he'd left the place guarded with novices, so it wasn't too hard. I just needed to get to the warehouse, where they were keeping my stuff, and I could make a nice break for it.

[ He takes another sip of his ale, finally. ]

Except there, guarding all my equipment, was Wang. Do they still use the graveyard shift as a punishment for drunkenness? [ But apparently that's not a question Geddoe was actually supposed to answer, because Nash keeps talking. ] Anyway, I thought maybe he'd just let me go, on account of how I didn't deserve to be locked up in the first place, but no dice. He told me, "I'm a dutiful man. And it's my watch tonight." Can you believe it?

So we fight, and, truth be told, without my weapons I was just hanging on. [ Joker is an expert martial artist, and Nash is… not. ] But then all of a sudden, he just says, "Time's up."

The first light of dawn was peaking through the window. Turns out he had to report for a mission first thing in the morning. So he followed his orders to the letter and let me escape.

[trueltning_fury]

[oho, so those were the details. Joker had only ever said 'eh we clashed a bit once but I had better things to do' and that was that. Geddoe's good eye narrows in a sly look, vaguely amused]

To the letter, huh? I suppose that's one way to look at it. Orders can be a curse but sometimes, a blessing in disguise.

[he can see where Nash is going with this. An order would make it very easy to make excuses for why he's prowling the Grasslands or the Northern Outlands when Harmonia needs defense elsewhere, but...]

...orders for the Twelfth means you'd get to rub shoulders with the other four as well. Have you ever camped with Ace?

[latkje]

Do I look like I want to?

[ Does anyone? ]

[trueltning_fury]

[okay that deserves a rare chuckle out of him]

Fair warning, then. Do you really want to make it an order?

[he leaves the question hanging for a moment and them continues right on ahead] ...or you could rely on the fact that our intentions, such as they are, align, at least until the Rune is found. Then all bets are off. But they would be, even if I'm ordered to accompany you anywhere.

[latkje]

Geddoe, I only give orders that I know will be carried out to the letter. And you've already told me enough to damn you in a few lines of my theoretical report. [ There are supposed to be trials, but that didn't always happen, especially in the military. ]

So if that's really what you're worried about, it would be better to kill me now. [ He tilts his head toward the bartender. ] Him too. [ Nothing personal, witnesses, et cetera. He's been to assassin school. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[judging by the wry twitch of an eyebrow, he knows, and it's deliberate. He's been around too many blocks to know that sometimes you have to feed info to get info. But most people aren't as shrewd as Nash.]

It would save a lot of time, but on the other hand, I'd miss out on whatever other useful things you can do for me in the meantime.

[he'll leave it at that, for now. It's still too early to decide whether he's up for a dangerous team-up or if he'll be going his own way at the end of the day]

Not sure how much longer I'll be on the payroll as it is. We'll see.

[latkje]

And you trust me enough to let me leave here alive. I'm just asking you to trust me a little bit further. [ If they actually find that Rune, it will go bad. But that's what happens when anyone finds a Rune. ]

It could make getting out of the Defense Force easier if that's really how you want to play it.

[trueltning_fury]

[it's not himself Geddoe is concerned about, but his unit. They're already in too deep, privy to his secret and guilty by association. He's fairly certain that if he wanted to leave today, he could just walk off into the wilderness and never report back in and that would be enough...but the rest of the unit would be put in danger if he did so. He likes those idiots, he's not leaving them high and dry like some runebearers of old cough cough]

Enough, yes. What's your idea, then?

[latkje]

If I can prove that the stupid thing isn't there, Harmonia doesn't have a reason to send other operatives tromping through the Grasslands to look for it. Or for someone down the line to invade in hopes of reclaiming the thing. [ Not that an invasion was likely to win the Rune back, but it was a pretty justification for expansionist impulses. Someone might try it. ]

And you'd look good. I could recommend transfer to a better paying post. [ One that it would be easier to slip away from. ] It'd buy you time. [ Nash has another idea, but it would involve more creative honesty on his part. And Geddoe probably actually would have to trust him. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[true, as much as Geddoe would like to hope that new treaty would be enough to hold them back, Harmonia might be willing to bend their promises just a bit in order to gain a True Rune. He sighs noisily, pondering the worst.]

You mean the ceremonial site north of the Great Hollow. [the first place to start looking, he was about to consider doing so himself] The Lizard Clan is guarding it closely, but Chief Dupa would probably let familiar faces like ours pass.

[he tosses back some of his drink and then shakes his head] No transfers. I'm with the Twelfth for their sake, not mine. If you can't ensure their safety, then I want no special treatment.

[latkje]

I know where it is. [ Albert Silverberg told him, remember? ]

Please. I can't ensure anyone's safety in the SFDF. [ That's the entire point. ] But if you were formally separated, they couldn't go after your unit for any of your shortcomings.

[ That's what he meant. ] It's better than leaving in the middle of the night.

[ Which is a topic he's been lectured on plenty, thank you. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[damn, so Nash has guessed at his intentions. It's not hard when anyone looks at the surface Geddoe with his lack of emotional investment in things and assume he'd just fuck off to nowhere. Which isn't wrong.

His frown deepens.]

If formal separation were so easy I would simply quit. But they'll follow me. [idiots. loveable idiots]

Let's stop playing coy and be plain about it, Nash. What do you want of me? That any other Defense Force unit or runebearer can't provide you...

[latkje]

[ Alright, hold that thought, there's something he has to say— ]

You think this is me playing coy?

[ He's only pulled one, maybe two strings. That's not enough to pluck a lyre.

Maybe he's been in Crystal Valley for too long. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[or maybe Geddoe's been jumping at shadows for too long, that he takes everyone who isn't his unit as suspicious]

As regards your mission, maybe. I don't doubt the rest of what you're saying.

[latkje]

[ To be fair, Nash is suspicious. ]

I'm not stupid enough to actually want to find a True Rune, Geddoe.

[ His protagonist days are long past him, anyway. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[for some reason that makes him smiiiiiirk]

I suppose we differ on that point, then.

[if a level of indifference counts as different. He wouldn't mind finding it just to be sure it wasn't in the wrong hands, but he's not in a hurry]

Maybe it's because I'm safe from it. I don't have to fear it accidentally attaching to me.

[latkje]

[ His free hand makes one of the superstitious signs the kobolds use to ward against evil. ]

No, you don't. [ Though Nash doesn't really consider that a likely possibility. ] Once someone cuts off your head, you don't need to worry about them poking out your eyes.

[ If Nash wanted power, he'd have more of it. Instead he was very good at swordfighting and very bad at maintaining healthy relationships with his family. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[morbid. He appreciates the aesthetic.]

So if you don't want to find it...you only need someone like me to verify that I haven't found it, whether I have or not.

[latkje]

No, if it's there, I want to know. It isn't a dog that will go away if you keep ignoring it.

[ Though in Nash's experience dogs do no such thing. Why are they so attracted to his feet? ]

[trueltning_fury]

Then, we'll have to throw the dice and see what comes of the gamble. If you want to come along, both of us will put each other at risk. If you want me to report back, I might disappear with it. [casual sip] Sounds like fun, if you ask me.

[said with all the dryness of the Kooluk desert. "Fun." But then, what's eternal life without a few gambles to keep things interesting once in a while?]

[latkje]

Exactly. [ He raises his hands for emphasis. ] Personally, I prefer working with people I know I can't trust. Dealing with the Zexen Knights got really boring.

[ He brings his arms down and takes another sip of his drink. Nash talks enough that he's usually. ]

Is that what you really want? To disappear?

[trueltning_fury]

[Geddoe snorts under his breath, mostly because he can agree on that. And that's even when he likes Salome.]

Fine, I can work with those terms.

[he glances up over the tankard in front of him, and then back down at it. It's been a while since he's had the chance to speak to someone who would possibly understand but also wasn't one of his unit, with vested interests in his existence.]

It's not a matter of wanting, it's simply one of the wisest plans of action. I've been prepared to do it at any point to protect any of the True Runes.

[latkje]

[ Nash likes Salome, too.

He nods once, acknowledging the agreement they've come to, then once again leans back in his chair, and raises an eyebrow. ]

So you can carry them through the middle of nowhere in your napsack? [ There's plenty about True Runes Nash is content not to know, but disappearing is something he understands. He contemplates running away often— more often when he's in Crystal Valley, in the months between his missions. ] There's a difference between wise and tactically sound, you know.

[ You can disappear to protect people, but you can't protect them from the hurt it brings them. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[he concedes that point with a bit of a roll of his head to the side. Yeah, maybe not tactically sound but when is protecting the handful of people you care about ever tactically sound?]

Usually. But I also don't have a lot else in my bag to get in the way. [haha joke...sob] True Rune crystals are larger than regular ones, but not prohibitively large. Believe me.

[he shoots Nash a wry look. He managed to carry True Lightning's for a short distance before the damn thing attached itself to him, he knows.]