[ voice ]

[underachieves]

[Dance music thumping distantly in the background, mostly indistinguishable but for the bass. He's at Fangtasia, actually, tucked away in one of the back rooms. But there's no video to give that away.

He sounds much more animated than usual, talking faster than his typical lazy drawl (although not precisely hyper):]You guys, death isn't even real

Comments

[leaderly]

Shikamaru...

[He isn't quite sure exactly what's going on, but he finds the other's attitude upsetting so soon after Yosuke's disappearance. He doesn't even know what to say after that.]

[underachieves]

Souji, do you get it?

[leaderly]

I don't think that I do.

[Loss of life is still utterly unnecessary, whether they come back from the dead or not.]

[underachieves]

Look: how can anyone be dead when anyone from any time can be here?

[leaderly]

They lose their lives here--that's still dying. It doesn't matter that they have the potential to show up again. Not everyone does.

[underachieves]

You can't lose something that's always existed and always will. You can't take away someone's life; it's a constant.

[leaderly]

...

What brought on this realization?

[He sees there's no winner in this argument, even if he disagrees.]

[underachieves]

I'm awake.

[leaderly]

...Are you alright?

[What is that even supposed to mean?]

[underachieves]

What? Yeah, I'm feeling great.

[leaderly]

Where are you anyway?

[He could hear the constant thumping.]

[underachieves]

[He's so lazy, he just hits the button to transmit GPS coordinates.]

[leaderly]

[He looks at the GPS and looks at the area.

Oh, it's that new nightclub he saw being talked about on the Network. That would explain the pounding in the background of the feed.]

I see. Are you sure you're alright? You don't...sound like yourself.

[underachieves]

Do you even know what I sound like?

[leaderly]

No, but that's because you've never spoken to me this much at once before, which is why I asked.

[underachieves]

Well, I feel great.