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[forensicks]

[Walter has recorded a video message from the point of view of someone who has just come through the door into his cabin and sees Walter at his desk in the chair turned around to face the viewer. He gives a little salute-wave.]

Didn't get me. But nice try.

Comments

[abrightboy]

“Mental stuff can hurt,” Malcolm points out.

[forensicks]

"You know that really well," Walter says out of the side of his mouth.

[abrightboy]

"Yeah. I do," Malcolm agrees. "And you haven't answered."

[forensicks]

Walter blows air out through his teeth. "I thought Arthur was actually unconscious. That part was hard."

[abrightboy]

“Because that was what you thought was mercy?” Malcolm asks, though there’s nothing cutting in his tone.

[forensicks]

"I don't know if I'd say that," Walter says, his lips feeling dry. "But it was hard. Their healing is apparently more like a ritual of sacrifice. Also hard."

[abrightboy]

“If you knew it was like that, would you still have gone through with it?” Malcolm asks. “Genuinely. Not the answer you think I want to hear.”

[forensicks]

There's a lot going on in his head as he tries to get the hypothetical timeline straight while walking instead of fidgeting with his feet or hands. "I would have put more effort into stopping the bleeding. With the lead time in the plan, there would have been a way to do that without compromising anything else."

[abrightboy]

“I suppose that’s a start. I want you to stay away from Arthur and John for the rest of this trip, okay? If you can manage that, I think we can get away with not locking you down,” Malcolm tells him.

[forensicks]

Walter raises an eyebrow. He is proud of himself for resisting an unhinged rant about how the long-lasting chunk of flesh is genuinely satisfying. "Might lock myself down. Watch some cartoons where the rainbow only has seven colors."

[abrightboy]

“I don’t know what that means,” Malcolm tells him plainly. “If you want to take some time for yourself, that’s fine, but the assault isn’t widely known, so you should be safe.”

[forensicks]

"It's a John thing." He waves his hand in front of his face. For once Walter doesn't think Malcolm should be able to keep up with his silly jokes. "Colors, everything, they're intense. So yeah, basically time for myself. Still allowed to call the chorebots for room service?"

[abrightboy]

“Of course,” Malcolm tells him. “They…. Don’t have any more human meat, right?”

[forensicks]

Walter slows down his walking a bit again, seriously weighed down, then shakes his head. "No, that would have had to come from harming someone else. I hope it's clear enough by now that didn't happen."

[abrightboy]

"No, I just... didn't know if they used it all for that pie," Malcolm tells him.

[forensicks]

"Fair question," Walter admits. He might as well ask. "Well, I think they did. But the other thing is that holding onto the scraps so long wouldn't really work. It would register to them as something to clean up, or food that was going bad."

[abrightboy]

"Then feel free to use the chorebots a much as you want," Malcolm tells him.

[forensicks]

"Thanks..." Walter says, and he means that. He's on thin ice. "What John Doe said about deserving... do you think that makes sense?"

[abrightboy]

"What do you mean?" Malcolm asks.

[forensicks]

Walter's two hands rub together. "When he tried to say that it's not about deserving... that struck me as a bit casuist to be honest. I don't know what I deserve. Certainly you could say that's sort of an almost religious question not worth answering, but it does make the whole process of redemption feel a little aimless."

[abrightboy]

“I think he was just agreeing that that… consequence wasn’t about punishing you,” Malcolm tells him.

[forensicks]

"Alright," Walter says, clearly skeptical.

"Well, my actions weren't justifiable. That's even clearer to me now."

[abrightboy]

"And they didn't achieve any of your goals, so there's no point to repeating them. I understand that. Do you think you're still a danger to other people on board?" Malcolm asks.

[forensicks]

"I said I'm not, but now you've got me curious. Does it matter?" Walter says. "There are wardens who can be dangerous, when floods mess with them and so on."

[abrightboy]

“Anyone can be dangerous if they’re out of their mind. I just wanted to hear you say you’re not in the context of your restrictions or lack of them,” Malcolm tells him.