heaven / marcoh

[midway]

Comments

[boxcar]

What do you mean?

Are you not the one inviting?

[midway]

[ This really does read like Claude inviting Marcoh out, and then somehow still finding a way to reject him. ]

You just seem like the sort to get swept up in people's crazy schemes... But never mind. Let's go.

[ To the bar! And then Claude will be like... to the beach! Once they have some bottles, because he doesn't like the bar. ]

[boxcar]

[ He opens his mouth a bit like he actually has something to say about that, but he quickly decides nevermind and just comes along.

Why don't you like the bar Claude, what happened. Marcoh doesn't seem to be all that keen on having like, tastes in drinking, he just grabs whatever alcohol bottle is there. Literally doesn't matter if it's wine or hard fucking vodka. ]

[midway]

[ Because it doesn't have a couch. And that's the truth.

Anyway, Claude probably gets wine because he doesn't want to get white girl wasted, but Marcoh is free to grab whatever. He'll lead them to the hot springs, and settle against one of the trees that's overlooking the springs. ]

Cheers?

[ Just holding up the bottle. ]

[boxcar]

[ AND THE HOT SPRINGS DO?

He just sits his ass down here, clinking his bottle to Claude's without really looking. At least drinking seems like a familiar-enough activity to him despite his seeming apathy about any particular drink of choice.

The drink that he doesn't actually drink, at least not right away. ]

I don't know what to think.

[midway]

[ THE AMBIANCE... IS COMFY...... look stools are the enemy ]

Hm? About what?

[boxcar]

All this.

I think, we are at six weeks left.

Already it is worse, with more bodies, and whatever it was that happened to you on Thursday before we were trapped.

Will there be more?

[midway]

I think all signs are pointing to yes, right now.

I don't think things are going to accelerate, but I think we should prepare ourselves for more of the same each week.

[boxcar]

Tomorrow, we will lose another.

So that's how it is? We'll lose three, at least, every week until the end? What does this prove?

[midway]

I don't know if it's meant to prove anything.

Maybe it's pessimistic but sometimes suffering isn't about learning a lesson or growing. Sometimes it's just suffering.

[boxcar]

Before the rise of the God of Fear and Hunger, maybe. But the Skin Bible says they were different. They acknowledged humankind's suffering, unlike the other gods.

[midway]

[ what ]

Sorry? [ He is just so taken aback by this. ] Is the Skin Bible the faith you practice?

[boxcar]

That is the most traditional bound scripture. The books where stuff about the gods are recorded.

[ There's even two versions because they HATE Enki Ankarian for telling the truth. ]

[midway]

Do you think the explanation of why this is happening is in your scripture?

[boxcar]

... No. I don't know.

Some things I recognise, like the tree. Others, I don't. This is not what the afterlife would be like, I thought.

But revealing its ugly underside, maybe I wasn't so wrong after all.

[midway]

Wrong about what?

[boxcar]

... That wherever I go after I died, it could not be a pleasant place.

[midway]

...

Now why would you believe something like that?

[boxcar]

The same reason that I might need anything like "redemption".

[midway]

You did a lot of things you believe are pretty terrible, huh?

[boxcar]

...

A murder trial... witch hunt, hits a little close.

[midway]

[ ... ]

Is it something you were expecting to come your way eventually?

[boxcar]

...

[ He grimly stares out into the hot spring waters for a bit. ]

I killed a man who didn't deserve it.

[midway]

[ Well, he'll take a sip of his wine. ]

Did you want to?

[boxcar]

No. Of course not. Not him.