And you must be terribly old and misinformed, to think me young. And to believe that any such bond between my kind would ever have the option of being simply removed. [He manages to keep some level of dry humor in his voice, and distinctly does not mention the one thing that would break the bond, for he does not wish it on Thranduil and he certainly does not wish it upon himself.]
A tool. I see. [If you could see this face...] There's no need to beat around the bush. You mean to say that you are taking yourself a hostage, yes?
Old? Older than dirt, quite literally. Misinformed? Possibly. [ He's purring now, like a cat with cream. ] Either way, you are still young enough to be a mote of dust floating on the surface of the river of time. I hope it does not swallow you; I find I enjoy your company.
Thranduil might be weak, and a coward, but he has the covetable honor of commanding much. I will take him as a hostage, and leave my demands at the feet of his supporters, who will rally either to meet them, or win him back by force. When they ascertain that meeting demands is by far the most advantageous option open to them, we will move forward.
Since you cannot break your bond, I warn you against interfering. I will make it gentler for you both.
Come between me and my goal, however, and I will not let my personal predilections come between me, and what will help win us escape from our mutual oppressor.
Enjoy my company? That is a surprise. There are few on the ship who would willingly admit to such things.
[He keeps the humor in his tone, although he is thinking fast on his feet. Warned against coming between him and his goal... Does he really not understand this bond at all? To just stand back and do nothing is not only an insult to Thranduil and himself but to the very nature of everything that he is. Like hell he will sit back and do nothing.]
There are others on board who have similar levels of command. Arguably more, given their position. And yet you focus on Thranduil.
For the most part, they are a small-minded bunch, so that does not surprise me.
[ There's a pause, before he says, very grim, ]
Because I know I can trust an elf like that to do what will serve the greater good for many people, but who will do so more cautiously than a fox. I need to incite in him cause to struggle against the ship; because he will do so cleverly, and bend much of his will to overcoming it if he perceives it a threat. But he would no do so in any wasteful manner, as we have seen others do, and if he could conceive it as the threat it is could be... a great, uniting force.
If I must do so by fanning his fear of me hot and hard, and then demonstrating its malice by comparison... I will do it.
[Eric recognizes a certain amount of respect for elves (and by proxy Thranduil) in Morgoth's words there. But at the same time, it makes Eric even more wary. Because he can recognize how much thought is behind this, and that makes it all the much more dangerous. He has seen this sort of drive before, and he knows that there is no question as to what lengths Morgoth might go to achieve his goal.]
If your goal is to scare him, then you have already succeeded many times over. As I am sure you are aware.
Nothing I can say here will make much of a difference as to whether you pursue him or not, will it. [Less a question than a statement.]
Nothing. [ Melkor agrees, though not without sympathy. ]
Help me sway his mind to this. My goal must be achieved, whether through brutality or any other means- I could afford to take far more care with him, if upon his rescue from me you would make him see the sense in escaping the Tranquility. I would be no threat to him then, nor to anything he loves...
[ Melkor does not laugh, and the levity with which he has spoken before becomes bleached from him. ]
I used to do what The Ship does to people. Over tens of thousands of years, I was the architect of things... similar enough that they would chill you. As the memory of it chills me now. I know how this story ends. I have written it myself a thousand times.
If it took my death, to put all to rights, to undo what has brought us here, I would not hesitate. There is too much I love at stake. If it took killing another, or a score of others, I would do that just as quickly. I know that you have accepted your internment here with a malaise of apathy, but if there is anything you care for on this ship more than you care for yourself, you will rail against it.
I will rail against it. And I will beg or force or trick others into railing against it. There are things worse than simple death, worse than torture or physical pain. And we will all suffer them alike.
I will show that to Thranduil by example, if that it what it takes to earn his effort to this cause. But I had hoped that you would help me need not to sink so far.
[Perhaps not anything he cares for on the ship more than himself, but anyone? Yes, Eric would say that there is at least one of the passengers on board that fits that definition. Arguably, Thranduil is working himself into that position as well. They are bondsmates, certainly. Eric does not want harm to come to him, and that sentiment has nothing to do with the fact that he will suffer himself if it does.]
I do not trust easily. And I do not know that I can trust you. Especially not with him.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
Re: Voice;
I'll be using him as a tool to force the cooperation of the elves, and perhaps their allies, into investing themselves into efforts against The Ship.
It shouldn't take longer than a few days, I expect.
Voice;
A tool. I see. [If you could see this face...] There's no need to beat around the bush. You mean to say that you are taking yourself a hostage, yes?
Re: Voice;
Thranduil might be weak, and a coward, but he has the covetable honor of commanding much. I will take him as a hostage, and leave my demands at the feet of his supporters, who will rally either to meet them, or win him back by force. When they ascertain that meeting demands is by far the most advantageous option open to them, we will move forward.
Since you cannot break your bond, I warn you against interfering. I will make it gentler for you both.
Come between me and my goal, however, and I will not let my personal predilections come between me, and what will help win us escape from our mutual oppressor.
Voice;
[He keeps the humor in his tone, although he is thinking fast on his feet. Warned against coming between him and his goal... Does he really not understand this bond at all? To just stand back and do nothing is not only an insult to Thranduil and himself but to the very nature of everything that he is. Like hell he will sit back and do nothing.]
There are others on board who have similar levels of command. Arguably more, given their position. And yet you focus on Thranduil.
Re: Voice;
[ There's a pause, before he says, very grim, ]
Because I know I can trust an elf like that to do what will serve the greater good for many people, but who will do so more cautiously than a fox. I need to incite in him cause to struggle against the ship; because he will do so cleverly, and bend much of his will to overcoming it if he perceives it a threat. But he would no do so in any wasteful manner, as we have seen others do, and if he could conceive it as the threat it is could be... a great, uniting force.
If I must do so by fanning his fear of me hot and hard, and then demonstrating its malice by comparison... I will do it.
Voice;
If your goal is to scare him, then you have already succeeded many times over. As I am sure you are aware.
Nothing I can say here will make much of a difference as to whether you pursue him or not, will it. [Less a question than a statement.]
Re: Voice;
Help me sway his mind to this. My goal must be achieved, whether through brutality or any other means- I could afford to take far more care with him, if upon his rescue from me you would make him see the sense in escaping the Tranquility. I would be no threat to him then, nor to anything he loves...
Voice;
You're going to take him, but you want me to agree to help you even so. And you want me to believe that you won't hurt him, even so.
Re: Voice;
I used to do what The Ship does to people. Over tens of thousands of years, I was the architect of things... similar enough that they would chill you. As the memory of it chills me now. I know how this story ends. I have written it myself a thousand times.
If it took my death, to put all to rights, to undo what has brought us here, I would not hesitate. There is too much I love at stake. If it took killing another, or a score of others, I would do that just as quickly. I know that you have accepted your internment here with a malaise of apathy, but if there is anything you care for on this ship more than you care for yourself, you will rail against it.
I will rail against it. And I will beg or force or trick others into railing against it. There are things worse than simple death, worse than torture or physical pain. And we will all suffer them alike.
I will show that to Thranduil by example, if that it what it takes to earn his effort to this cause. But I had hoped that you would help me need not to sink so far.
Voice;
I do not trust easily. And I do not know that I can trust you. Especially not with him.
Re: Voice;
Which is all at once wise and foolish of you. Go with care.
[ So saying, he ends the call. ]