♫ contractors

[falsehymn]

❝But I tell you, do not swear
an oath at all:
either by Heaven, for it is God’s throne;
or by the earth,
for it is His footstool;
or by Jerusalem, for it is the
city of the Great King.
And do not swear by your head,
for you cannot make even
one hair white
or black.
All you need to say is simply 'Yes' or 'No';
anything beyond this comes from
the evil one.
—Matthew 5:34-37

Comments

[falsehymn]

It is for a good cause; one that will lead to happiness greater than the suffering caused. Is that not enough reason to hold your head high?

[laestrella]

Whose happiness? What did you mean when you said the dead will be 'revised'?

[falsehymn]

( ... Smiles. )

We are the products of hearsay. How we are perceived can warp what we believe about ourselves, and how others view us, too. Few can assert themselves and defy all false rumor and perception.

The dead, in their precarious state of existence, have no capacity to assert themselves. Thus, they are particularly vulnerable to being revised by perception. I believe from the very start I've encouraged you all to bond with one another and learn as much about each other as you could, no?

[laestrella]

Thou did say as such. Which is why...[Well, she would have worked hard anyway to connect with people, so it wasn't Sika Madu's suggestions that made her behave as such]

...but, is that just the realm of the dead? Man A--no, Young Ainosuke-- suggests even living we can be revised all over. How does one avoid that?

[falsehymn]

Ah, him...

He embraced himself in ways Father did not approve of, and he was beginning to awaken a sense of self-acceptance and identity in the Extras, as well.

Father's power is derived from punishment. He is able to less effectively punish those who are not influenced by His limitations and edicts... and so "Man A" was made into an example, of sorts.

I don't suppose you've been engaging in similar activities? If not, you are likely not in danger.

( "likely," )

[laestrella]

Does that mean our executions hath been fuelling his power? Or is...is it simply what he must inflict on his own?

[because the City is like that, Don Quixote genuinely has no baseline for what Sika Madu means. For a horrifically oppressive hypercapitalist world, at least it is devoid of sexism and homophobia? You too, can Girl Boss yourself into being the Head of an Evil Corporation. So she has to let that go because ????]

...and my punishment. That was his will to make his power stronger?

[falsehymn]

I believe you are on the right path. I confess, I do not know His workings perfectly, because His nature is unknowable ( blah blah bible stuff )— in more pragmatic terms, He is obscured from thought and understanding, as if hidden behind a veil.

However, what you speculate sounds correct to me. My capacity to produce miracles is fueled by my suffering, so His capacity to punishment receiving fuel by suffering done in His name seems a correct parallel.

In general, all things are require a price of suffering. At least, in this story. This is how He wrote it.

[laestrella]

But we are not his Children, are we? [Like they are not Sika Madu's]

And what of after, should there be enough suffering?

[falsehymn]

He considers all things that live within His purview. Whether He considers you His children, I could not tell you. He has not spoken with me directly for a long, long time.

( The question simply narrows her eyes in something of a complicated expression. )

. . . There can never be enough suffering. Not for Him.

[laestrella]

[ Don Quixote's expression tightens a little]

Then he is weak, if that's the origin of his power.