Chloe’s speech sets off an absolute firestorm of deliberations. She doesn’t shift the tenor of the room overwhelmingly in the direction of seeking peace. More than a few people knew someone directly affected by the tragedy of last night. Plenty more among the gathered crowd also remain fiercely loyal to the country they’ve lived in and known their entire lives. But, having highlighted the very real cost of their aggressive posturing— including the cost they themselves will bear in terms of personal security— Chloe has managed to win some converts, and vociferous deliberations have broken out, among the crowd and the council alike.
The Mayor tries bringing order to the chambers, pounding on his gavel several times in succession. However, it’s to no avail. He’s completely exhausted, in the midst of second-degree [Ether] strain, and whatever Skill he was using before isn’t finding purchase. After a few tries and just as many failures to quell the heated discussions throughout the room, he simply taps his gavel one last time, sending the meeting into temporary recess.
Once he does, Councilwoman Symone steps down to speak with me. She turns to me, giving me a polite smile and offering a handshake, which I accept.
“Aria Symone,” she says. “A privilege to meet with you, Ms. Mortensen.”
“Just Seraphina is fine,” I say. “Is there something I can do for you, Councilwoman?”
“Actually, I was going to ask you exactly that.”
“I… I don’t think there’s anything I need help with at the moment.” I lower my voice to a whisper. “Unless you have any ideas for how to get the council from clamoring for a war that they can’t win and that I don’t intend to fight on their behalf.”
“I expected something like that after your friend’s speech. And I can’t blame you for not wanting to fight. If they were able to overwhelm our nation’s capital in a single night, I’m sure they must have powers far greater, ones that they’ve kept hidden from the press.”
“Our nation?”
“I did swear an oath. And truth be told, I feel for the people who lost their lives last night. I… I sympathize with their families, even though I know there’s not much I can do.”
“Not much for fighting, yourself?”
“There’s a saying. War is a continuation of politics by violent means, Seraphina. Which means that politics is merely war with words and persuasion, rather than guns and bombs. I don’t hope to do well in your arena, which is why I plan to stick to mine.”
I nod. “And yet, despite that, you still seem open to negotiation. Considering that, and how many people are raging for vengeance here this morning, it’s a bit surprising you’re not arguing right alongside them.”
“Because I don’t want to add further to the body count. Actually… Now that I think about it, you were one of the ones who fought against the harpies back in early June, right? Back in the sky? You and Chloe both, if I recall.”
I think back to that time and sigh. “I was. And… I’m sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing? You saved tens of thousands of lives that day.”
“Maybe I did, but did I have that right? To kill eight— however inadvertently— to save ten or a hundred thousand thousand?”
“How do you know that to be true?”
“The System said as much.”
“We don’t know the System to be infallible. It could have told you a lie. Or it could have deliberately fudged the cause of death. For all we know, those eight might have died either way. If not by the harpies, then by all the structural damage they caused, or they would have succumbed to their injuries or–”
“I just… I can’t help but wonder if there was another way, one that would have let us keep fighting without causing so much collateral damage.” And that’s ignoring the fact that I do have more evidence than I’m letting on about exactly how infallible the System really is. Still, I do appreciate her attempts to comfort me.
“Hmm… I will admit it is not ideal. However, I think the truth of your culpability is somewhere in-between nothing and the guilt that you are assigning to yourself. Permit me one question, if I may: Did you intend to cause death or serious injury to the townsfolk?”
“N– No! Of course not! I set the blast’s center where I believed the appropriate tradeoffs were between wiping out as much of the harpy horde as I could, while avoiding hitting myself or the others fighting alongside me. I did take into consideration the amount of damage I thought would be likely. But ultimately, it was an untested spell. The only one I thought had a chance of either wiping out the mob of monsters, or at least eradicating enough of them to cause them to flee in terror, which is ultimately what happened.”
“It sounds like you did everything right, at least as far as I can tell. But if you still feel a need to make further amends, there’s always various duties to attend to around the city. I’m sure your powers can be put to the public good. It might not be directly paying back the weight of your guilt, but serving the people you feel you wronged would be a form of restorative justice.”
“I agree with Councilwoman Symone,” Nicholas says. “It is a tragedy for sure, but far from unheard of in our line of work.”
Nicholas subtly flourishes his hand at his side, again using his [Privacy Veil] Skill. I’m not confident it’s as robust to anti-spying Skills as Chloe’s and my [Angelic Bond], but it should do fairly well in keeping out the prying ears of people who haven’t specifically taken espionage-related Skills. Especially considering the tyranny of levels
I lower my head slightly, not exactly comfortable being associated with military work, even if I understand it to be true, even technically speaking.
“It is unavoidable,” Nicholas continues. “As long as there are people willing to fight and kill for the causes they believe in, there will be a need for those who are willing to fight in defense of themselves and the causes they themselves hold dear. And knowing that conflict is inevitable, throughout the course of human civilization, we have developed new and more potent ways of killing each other, both for offensive and defensive purposes. The System’s arrival only accelerated a process that goes back ten thousand years, when we learned to sharpen sticks, then create bows and simple swords, launch javelins with atlatls, and over time, move from simple weapons to siege weapons to firearms and nukes, and now literal magic and Ethertech weapons.
“What I am trying to tell you, Ms. Mortensen, is that no matter the time or the place, no matter the technology, there has always been the possibility for weapons to strike errantly or cause needless death, despite even the best of intentions. A spear thrown off-kilter, a horse or elephant spooked, a gun misfired. Faulty intelligence, rogue agents, sabotage, poor communication between officers and their subordinates, manufacturing defects… The list goes on and on.”
“This is what I’ve been scared of. Why I wasn’t keen on helping with your work. Why I wasn’t happy with your [Ether Cannon], even now, knowing it’s saved our lives twice. Because I knew once I created these weapons, it was only a matter of when they’d be used against people. I wasn’t sure whether by the military, terrorists, war profiteers, or otherwise, but I knew this day would come. And I don’t like it.”
“Ms. Mortensen, perhaps an alternative perspective will put your mind more at ease. Back in the ending days of World War II, our president made the decision to drop the atomic bombs in part because he felt doing so would lead to fewer casualties and lesser human suffering in the long run. Philosophers, historians, ethicists… They all still debate that decision to this day. I don’t know what the consensus will be in another eighty or eight hundred years, but I, for one, think he made the correct decision.
“And I think you made the correct decision two months ago, just as I stand behind my decision to commission that [Ether Cannon] that saved our lives not just once, but twice now. Your actions— both as a [Glyphcaster] on the frontlines, and a researcher and developer of [Ethertech]— have saved many, many more than eight lives. This is beyond debate and above reproach. Do what you need to in order to assuage your guilt. But I don’t believe you have acted in the wrong.”
“Do you still believe this to be true now? Even after knowing the history of mankind following those events?”
“I do. And the reason is simple. It’s actually the same reason that you ultimately relented. That being, that it was only a matter of time until someone else had developed those weapons. That power was going to be discovered and used, and probably by people with selfish motives opposed to our own interests. Better that the information is spread to everyone than only in the hands of our adversaries.”
I’m not sure I like his discussion of adversaries, of speaking of the world in zero-sum terms, where there must be a ‘winner’ and a ‘loser’ to every conflict. I haven’t done the best job of it— and the System, with its Experience system, doesn’t help. But at Chloe’s insistence and for her sake, I did promise that we would make a reasonable effort to avoid rushing into physical confrontation as the first solution to every conflict.
“Seraphina,” Councilwoman Symone chimes in. “After speaking with you and hearing from Chloe, I feel better about Major Richardson’s recommendation.”
“Recommendation?” Chloe asks. “As far as this summit that you all think is going to happen?”
“Indeed. Having heard from the both of you, I think you two will be ideal representatives. Of course, I will also propose that one among the council— perhaps myself, perhaps another— will also attend, to make sure the interests of our business, industrial, and other noncombatant communities are represented.”
“In other words, you want us to represent the interest of high-level fighters, and serve as the councilmember’s bodyguards?”
“Better than a uniformed member of the armed forces,” Nicholas concedes. “That would give the wrong impression.”
Councilwoman Symone nods. “I hope you will give the matter due consideration. Now then, I believe we are about to reconvene the meeting here in just a couple of minutes, so I need to head back up there.”
Once she’s outside the [Privacy Veil], Nicholas turns to me with a stern expression on his face. “Now then,” he says, not missing a beat. Military discipline, I suppose. “There is one other matter to discuss, concerning your forays into the Tower Gauntlet over the past two months.”
“Is there a problem?” I ask.
“Not at all. At least, nothing I would classify as a problem. More an opportunity to mutually work together.”
“You want to go with us on our last foray into the Gauntlet?” Chloe asks.
“I understand that neither of you fully trust me, and I accept as much without complaint. However, I do believe, based on my understanding of your fighting style, Skills, and general abilities, that the three of us working together can serve both our ends. Beyond the fact that enhancement-stacking has proven to be a particularly effective means of combating System-generated monsters, I also have the analysis and identification Skills that neither of you possess. By working together, we should be able to maximize the amount of Ethertech items and enhancements on the highest floor. And, if nothing else, this will be good practice working alongside someone you may not fully like or trust.”
“You’re right,” I say. “I don’t like it at all. And yet, I can’t deny the truth behind your words.”
“Are you sure about this, Sera?” Chloe messages. “I’m fine either way, but you’re a better judge of this sort of thing than I am.”
“I’m– I’m not sure at all. I don’t think he’ll try to backstab us, but I just… Hate that once again, I’m being played like a puppet to his strings. Probably have been since the moment he walked in here. So… Frustrating!”
“And yet you’re going to agree to it.”
“I think it is in all our best interests, even if it means that we’re going to have to bite our teeth the whole time.”
“On this, I agree,” Chloe says. “Last night made one thing clear. We all do need to get stronger if we’re to properly protect those we care about.”
“Fine,” I tell Nicholas. “Though, I do want you to answer one question. Why should you trust the two of us?”
“I could give you a few answers. Because you two aren’t the type to perform such underhanded tactics. Because you know you two by yourselves aren’t strong enough to conquer the Tower. Or just because both of you enjoy the creature comforts of living in contemporary society too much. You like living in your hometown, being around people, enjoying hot baths, air-conditioned rooms, and well-prepared, well-seasoned food. You wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize that. And, though you don’t like me personally, you both have demonstrated an admirable degree of professionalism in that you can set that aside and work with me, time and time again. Which, among other reasons, is why I made this recommendation.”
“So… when is this going to happen?”
“Tomorrow morning, Oh-Seven Hundred.”
I turn to Chloe; she nods. “We’ll be there.”