i am a cage in search of a bird

[crocodiline]

[ 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. ]

Comments

[visiblepattern]

Yes, but...

[...]

...Let us get the animals first. Before we do that.

[... ... ...]

Was it worth it? Any of it.

[crocodiline]

[ She looks out towards the statues, towards the ones still covered by cloth. ]

... Here on the other end, I'm not sure. I think digging all those graves might have been a waste of time.

[visiblepattern]

[...He has to ask.]

...Did you really have a way to follow through on all of the incentives? Because if so, I would like you to show me how to do that as well. Before everything ends one way or another.

[crocodiline]

Sure. You want a plan to win the war, too? Learned a lot doing research of your world. There's some wild things going on there.

[visiblepattern]

No.

I just want my family back at this point. Maybe that's an unfair thing to ask; honestly, some part of me knows it is, since that's not supposed to be something we can go back on.

But I don't care. I've come through all of this, and I want my family back, and we'll decide what to do from there.

[crocodiline]

All right, sure. I can use the Lutece Machine to pull them from right before they died, does that work for you?

[visiblepattern]

...Yes.

Thank you.

[inaclearing]

That's...something you'll just do? Don't - don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining!

[Just...well. Feels different, when it's freely offered...]

[crocodiline]

I offered it for winners. You've all won, haven't you?

[inaclearing]

I've - well, I've mostly just been riding their coattails here...

[Also this is like. Not a choice he super wants? It's not that simple, not for him - but doesn't that make him really awful, if he has that opportunity free and clear and turns it down then?]

[crocodiline]

Then don't worry about it. You're still free and clear.

[inaclearing]

....I'm not, though, am I?

[That was rhetorical, but yeah no don't worry he's gonna super worry about it now!]