unknownseas | i am a cage in search of a bird

Entry tags:

endgame,
round 3

i am a cage in search of a bird

[ The figure inside the frosted glass snaps her fingers, and the glass falls away, sliding into grooves in the ground below. Inside, behind additional bulletproof glass, sits a woman, legs up on a transparent glass desk, absentmindedly petting a... whatever this thing is.

Say hello to your mastermind, everyone! ]

Hey there, everyone. Nice to talk to you in person - my name is Cipher, welcome to my city. Sorry I took so long to show up in person. No need to get up on my account - how about we talk business?

[ Let's drive. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I learned something about this whole exercise, going through it and watching it. It brings out exactly who you are. Shows what you're capable of. Brings out the best in you. That's all I wanted to see.

You weren't supposed to remember this part of recruitment. Just that you hate Frank Fontaine.

...What about us made us ideal candidates for Founders? Was there a quality that you were seeking out, or...

As tacky as it sounds, the secret of these sorts of things? You can genuinely pull at random and you'll get people you can shape into doing great things.

...I'm sorry, ma'am, but you cannot tell me that there's a circumstance in which I would actually be good for anything like this.

[Brett - who was literally thinking the exact same thing and we can all see it on his face and also he was talking about it like twenty in-universe minutes ago - immediately becomes a hypocrite!]

Forrest, come on. You're incredibly accomplished already, in multiple fields. I'm sure you're only going to get better.

... You're both terrible at self-evaluation.

[Brett opens his mouth like he's about to have a long retort - but he's rarely one to just blurt stuff out without consideration, so all he ends up saying is:]

This isn't about me.

I'm not saying I have no skills at all, Brett. I'm saying that in this specific circumstance I can't really see myself bringing much to the table. I'm a cleric from a thousand years ago who likes fashion.

That didn't stop you from figuring out like, half the cases here.

[Probably an exaggeration if we were to stop and look at the numbers, but it sure feels that way. Forrest's got some killer (ha) instincts!]

You're smart and you have good instincts. Adapting to this time period's just a matter of experience.

...I suppose.

I'm still not following. As Mafuyu said, it seems like a lot of effort for something that doesn't benefit you in any way.

Eh, I figured I'd be a competitor in the New Rapture business. Seemed like as good an idea as any after making it through one of these. I'd just do it better.

You don't sound all that enthused about it.

[...]

Why did you bring us here? It seems you were planning for a confrontation even before we went through your things, so what are you hoping to accomplish here?

Your friends already turned my computer against me. I'm no longer hooked to the Vita-Chamber network, and there's a group of annoying do-gooders who've found this dimension and are on their way to try to rescue you. And I believe in planning for the long-term, so I figured it wasn't beneficial for any of us to just hunker down while they try to break through New Rapture's defenses. If there's no killing and resetting you, we can at least talk things out like adults.

So things were going to come to an end anyway, and you'd prefer to end it on your own terms.

[...Well, he supposes he can understand that.]

Very well. I appreciate the answers, at least.

And hey, don't undercut yourself, you guys can pick what you want to do with the legacy I'm leaving you. Whatever happens now is your choice. I said to myself "If they can figure it all out, I'll leave them in charge." And you all did.