Within the confines of the game rules, what's the scenario you wanted to happen today?
[ it's not the kindest question because it's still asking for nahida to say who she would have rather see dead, but nahida is still a god even if lambda thinks she's sometimes much too compassionate for one. ]
If it was just the two of them - then, they would have needed to set it up very carefully, to make it look as though the culprit could have been someone other than who it was... preferably a member of a team of three. That would have minimized the bloodshed and maximized the number of points earned, and given us more leeway with the threshold for getting everyone out of this. As long as it was arranged in a way that made coming to the wrong conclusion look natural, the game's overseers couldn't have a problem with it.
[But that isn't what happened...]
Now... the absolute minimum number of lives that will be lost are five, and that's assuming they vote for Kyoko to minimize the bloodshed. But we don't know if she would be a valid vote in the framework of the game, since her last teammate is dead and her erasure is ensured. If taking the easy way out would be cheating or would look suspicious, we'd be looking at six. Potentially seven or more, depending on how the erasure goes, and if any Noise are able to interfere.
If the number of points that needs to be earned goes up with each of the lives that are lost... Nightingale told me this would be the last trial. If it does turn out that this will require more than we're able to earn...
[...ah, but she's strayed from the question. she shakes her head.]
I don't know that there would be a better option for Netzach and Yuzuriha, though. Their strategy was a sound one. That's... why I wrote to Netzach earlier this week and told him that although I didn't like it, I would understand if it's the strategy they chose to use.
[ it's as thorough of an analysis as she expected from nahida. she's almost glad for it. she doesn't object to any of it, really. ]
If it's the last trial, I don't think there should be anything against voting for Kyoko. It shouldn't be against the rules, and it'd be a sound strategy even if it weren't the last trial. After all, it's a way to maximize points.
[ more bodies are more chances at points in the scenario this weren't an eight week game. ]
It was the most efficient, if they were both taken out, rather than having one and the other... left to be Erased. They don't have to go in vain.
I would hope there shouldn't be anything against that. It's just... as a whole, the group has nearly always prioritized voting for a culprit when they could find one. I worry that if they're too obvious about voting for her instead of a culprit, then it might invite intense scrutiny on the results and the points... and scrutiny is the last thing anyone needs when we're trying to find the right time to transfer the points that we've earned here to the team that's in the lead.
Given our behavior up until now, it would look unnatural to spend all that time investigating and then swing to vote for her if there was anyone else. If it's confusing enough that they can't settle on a culprit, though, it would make more sense.
[If they did it that way... it will be fine. But I don't think I'll stop worrying until we see what the evidence looks like.]
...yes. If this was something they chose - and I believe that it was, from the conversations I had with them before I died... this was something they didn't consider lightly, and something that would have taken strength of will to follow through with. [...] I understand that, and I admire them for it. It's just... selfishly, I wish they hadn't felt like they had to die.
Valerie's curse made sure of that. I wasn't in my right mind... Doing more than I did to cover it up wasn't something I was capable of considering at the time. It wasn't until Nahri broke the curse at the end that I really came back to myself, but at that point...
[it was too late.]
...besides, as far as numbers go, it was as close as we could get to a good outcome. No team was fully wiped out, and because they caught me, the teams in the lead earned more points. Considering that, my personal feelings about where I want to be aren't important.
I wasn't, but... he did what he could. It would have looked more suspicious if he couldn't use his secondary Psych at all.
[Huh? ...oh.]
I don't mean to be self-abasing. Just... pragmatic, is all. Looking at the situation overall, it's not the worst outcome. I can be satisfied with that.
I won't pretend that I feel good about it. [she may have believed that valerie was the best choice of their available options - but she is just a teenager. almost everyone here other than the immortals seems so terribly young to her already, but the teens... especially so.] But, it was necessary, so I'd do it again if I had to, regardless of my feelings about it.
[ it's not something lambda can relate to. she'd murder valerie just for being annoying, if she didn't also think she was so insignificant. murder isn't inherently terrible to her. ]
You hold more feelings about it than most gods would.
Mm. Some of us may not like it, but not liking it doesn't change the reality of our situation. [her gaze drifts back to the screens, watching people react to the deda announcements and so on.] ...but we'll get through this.
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dendroculi) wrote2023-06-07 06:02 pm
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[ it's not the kindest question because it's still asking for nahida to say who she would have rather see dead, but nahida is still a god even if lambda thinks she's sometimes much too compassionate for one. ]
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[she's quiet, thinking.]
If it was just the two of them - then, they would have needed to set it up very carefully, to make it look as though the culprit could have been someone other than who it was... preferably a member of a team of three. That would have minimized the bloodshed and maximized the number of points earned, and given us more leeway with the threshold for getting everyone out of this. As long as it was arranged in a way that made coming to the wrong conclusion look natural, the game's overseers couldn't have a problem with it.
[But that isn't what happened...]
Now... the absolute minimum number of lives that will be lost are five, and that's assuming they vote for Kyoko to minimize the bloodshed. But we don't know if she would be a valid vote in the framework of the game, since her last teammate is dead and her erasure is ensured. If taking the easy way out would be cheating or would look suspicious, we'd be looking at six. Potentially seven or more, depending on how the erasure goes, and if any Noise are able to interfere.
If the number of points that needs to be earned goes up with each of the lives that are lost... Nightingale told me this would be the last trial. If it does turn out that this will require more than we're able to earn...
[...ah, but she's strayed from the question. she shakes her head.]
I don't know that there would be a better option for Netzach and Yuzuriha, though. Their strategy was a sound one. That's... why I wrote to Netzach earlier this week and told him that although I didn't like it, I would understand if it's the strategy they chose to use.
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If it's the last trial, I don't think there should be anything against voting for Kyoko. It shouldn't be against the rules, and it'd be a sound strategy even if it weren't the last trial. After all, it's a way to maximize points.
[ more bodies are more chances at points in the scenario this weren't an eight week game. ]
It was the most efficient, if they were both taken out, rather than having one and the other... left to be Erased. They don't have to go in vain.
It takes as much to die as it does to kill.
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Given our behavior up until now, it would look unnatural to spend all that time investigating and then swing to vote for her if there was anyone else. If it's confusing enough that they can't settle on a culprit, though, it would make more sense.
[If they did it that way... it will be fine. But I don't think I'll stop worrying until we see what the evidence looks like.]
...yes. If this was something they chose - and I believe that it was, from the conversations I had with them before I died... this was something they didn't consider lightly, and something that would have taken strength of will to follow through with. [...] I understand that, and I admire them for it. It's just... selfishly, I wish they hadn't felt like they had to die.
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[ at least, she only bothered to vote right when she did because it was a points thing.
she shrugs. ]
You know how the mechanics of that side work more than I do, so if you're that worried, I'll defer to your judgment on that.
If that's the case, as long as they don't look too deeply into it, their choice shouldn't all be in vain.
[ it hurts me that lambda is so insensitive and pragmatic about it, but here she is. ]
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...we'll just have to wait and see what happens.
[she sighs deeply.
I hate only being able to watch.]
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You could have made it harder to catch you, if you still wanted to be over there.
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[she smiles faintly.]
Valerie's curse made sure of that. I wasn't in my right mind... Doing more than I did to cover it up wasn't something I was capable of considering at the time. It wasn't until Nahri broke the curse at the end that I really came back to myself, but at that point...
[it was too late.]
...besides, as far as numbers go, it was as close as we could get to a good outcome. No team was fully wiped out, and because they caught me, the teams in the lead earned more points. Considering that, my personal feelings about where I want to be aren't important.
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[ it's not like shu wasn't also there. ]
We are all focused on the greater goal, but that kind of self-abased attitude is annoying.
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[Huh? ...oh.]
I don't mean to be self-abasing. Just... pragmatic, is all. Looking at the situation overall, it's not the worst outcome. I can be satisfied with that.
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Pragmatism is more than fine, but I think you've been down on yourself ever since you killed Valerie.
[ it's just an observation. ]
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You hold more feelings about it than most gods would.
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...inaction would actually do more harm overall.
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[she nods again]
Mm. Some of us may not like it, but not liking it doesn't change the reality of our situation. [her gaze drifts back to the screens, watching people react to the deda announcements and so on.] ...but we'll get through this.