Second Arte; [Voice]

[subethical]

Well now, I suppose it goes without saying that our little venture out in the jungle didn't end on much of a high note. [Jade sounds unconcerned, as always, but his tone changes slightly as he cuts to the point. This was a serious matter, despite their location, and he didn't want to blatantly offend those who could otherwise offer him useful

Comments

[Voice]

[cakeblocked]

[... Oi. But Luke is not surprised by this.] Jade, don't you think you should give everyone some time first?

[Voice]

[subethical]

It was simply a request. [Shrug. He doesn't understand the issue here, Luke. They weren't going to stay dead.] If I am to wait, I might as well wait the two weeks for the others to return and question them then. This way is simply the quickest means to the end.

[Voice]

[cakeblocked]

No one wants to talk about what happened! [Sigh. He shouldn't get worked up, but it really was a terrible time.] Why do you want to know about it, anyway? You were there, isn't that enough?

[Voice]

[subethical]

[Really, Luke, you get worked up so suddenly over the strangest things. If you didn't want to think about what happened, you could go off and pretend it had nothing to do with you. Jade hadn't called you out personally, in fact, it was slightly annoying.]

Indeed, I was. However, even I can't be everywhere at once. It may seem unnecessary to you, but I personally believe that it's important to gather what little information we can on both our captors and those in opposition to them. The more information we have, the better prepared we will be for the next incident. There are things I would like to know. Even if talking about it is unpleasant.

Especially since we end up the ones risking our lives fighting their battles, on their terms. Is that much enough for you?

//filtered 45%

[soreplaceable]

[It might take a little while for a reply to show up. Ion's been sleeping on and off all day, seeing as he's currently confined to his bed. Not that he had any plans to do anything else right now other than sleep off the past four days worth of stress. He sounds a bit tired, and the small camera-window in the journal should make it apparent that he's still laying down.]

[They haven't spoken since the draft, have they...]

Hello, Jade.

//filtered 45%

[subethical]

Good evening, Fon Master. How are you feeling? [From the looks of it, Ion was still resting. Normally remaining in bed wasn't necessary, but it wasn't necessarily surprising, considering Ion was already somewhat frail.

He isn't going to address the other issue just yet. He wants to check up on Ion's mental well-being first and foremost.]

//filtered 45%

[soreplaceable]

[Frail or not, his housemates weren't about to let him go wandering about the village so soon after a serious injury.]

I still feel a little tired, but I'm better than I had been yesterday. [D'awww Jade is worried about him.] Thank you for asking.

//filtered 45%

[subethical]

I'm glad to hear it. [Of course Jade was going to ask. Nephry would be quite irritated if he didn't at least expend the minimum amount of effort it took to find out that much.] If you feel odd at all, you should inform either me or Dist immediately. This is a rather serious injury, despite all appearances. [He knows you've been avoiding him, Fon Master.

Not that he faulted him for it. Ion wouldn't have sustained this injury at all if Jade hadn't nudged him in the right position. He understood Ion's hesitation, but even so, he wasn't intending to shrug off his responsibility.] You needn't thank me, Fon Master. I'm not quite deserving of your thanks.

[Voice]

[mirrorbirth]

Those battles aren't all about statistics of the dead, Necromancer.

[Even he has more tact than that, geez. Still, this is convenient. He should probably talk to Jade before too much time passes.]

[Voice]

[subethical]

Why, if it isn't Asch! This is certainly a surprise. I'd almost forgotten you were here! [Still as sour-faced as ever, Asch.]

I'm not entirely concerned with the statistics of the matter, I'm merely satisfying my own personal curiosity.

[Voice]

[mirrorbirth]

[And as always Asch is reminded of why he doesn't like Jade.]

I'm sure. [Uuuugh, why did he even bother speaking up.] You can't seriously expect other people to look at it as objectively as you.

[Voice]

[subethical]

[It's too late to back out now Asch. You were the one who initiated this conversation.]

Perhaps, perhaps not. This is a rather diverse group of individuals. Anything is possible. [He wasn't expecting the majority of them to take his questions very favorably, however, like Asch, it was a little late to retract his request. Not that he would. And of course, there was the odd chance that he would get lucky and someone would respond with the information he was looking for.]

[filtered - 80%]

[offallingsnow]

[Your filter doesn't stand up well. ...So he wants to talk to Ion, but Ion was so reluctant to talk to him.]

I suppose you have some reason for asking such a difficult question?

[Meaning, you had better have one.]

[filtered - 80%]

[subethical]

[They weren't discussing anything that Jade felt required much filtering. It was more for Ion's own privacy, otherwise he wouldn't have put it up at all.

Although, if you're so worried about him Nephry, you could always ask.]

Is it difficult? It doesn't seem very difficult to me at all. It is an unpleasant topic, yes, but I do think that the information contained could be relevant to our current situation.

[filtered - 80%]

[offallingsnow]

As a soldier, your perspective is quite different from a civilian's. Especially one who may have lost a close friend or partner.

[But now to business]

What will you tell me about what happened to Ion?

[filtered - 80%]

[subethical]

I am aware. However, the Malnosso don't seem to bother making that distinction. It would be dangerous not to do the same.

The Fon Master? He fell from an enemy trap and sustained a rather severe head injury. It was rather unfortunate, really. [He would be a bit more descriptive if you'd like Nephry, he has no problem explaining the situation to you. However, if there is a chance for him to avoid it, he will take it. He would rather not tell you everything just now.]

[Voice]

[its_rose_damnit]

[Ah, there you are, Jade. Dist wanted to speak with you. He gives the post a quick listening to and while he offhandedly agrees that this kind of request would likely get more ire than answers, the resulting benefits would be well used. If these ignorant children wanted to cry, let them, but the Malnosso's war was becoming their own. Information is not only necessary, but essential for success. From the looks of it, and from what others had to say, they lost this battle.

Why is he not surprised? The tactic seemed flawed already.]

Anything you happen to find out, Jade, I'd like to ask you inform me as well...if you'd be so kind. For curiosity's sake and for future reference, of course.

As for answering your question... [His tone drops quite a bit.] Fon Master Ion seems to have sustained quite a bit of damage after I've examined him after battle. Nothing serious - cuts, bruises, minor sprains, you know. ...However. I did find quite a serious bit of trauma occurring to his head. A concussion. You wouldn't happen to know anything

[Voice]

[subethical]

I suppose it wouldn't be too much trouble. Since you asked so nicely. [It was more of a reward really, you were the only one thus far that openly seemed to find some worth in his inquiries, and if anything were to happen to him, it was good for someone else to know of anything important. As for Dist's question:]

Indeed I do. I was with the Fon Master when he obtained the injury. [But he's going to be frustrating and not reveal much more than that. You're going to have to ask him.] I was the one who initially examined him.

[Voice]

[its_rose_damnit]

[Nrrrgh, that tone of voice is so obnoxiously grating. Damn you, Jade Curtiss, you don't need to do much to rub people the wrong way. Thankfully, Dist has a bit of a strong immunity to your wiles...most of the time. He quietly thanks his friend for the prior statement, keeping a close eye on the open and unlocked threads available.]

So I assumed. And can I also assume you did your very best to keep the Fon Master out of harm while you two were deployed? You wouldn't have actually done anything potentially harmful to Ion's health...correct?

[Like using poor Ion as bait for Third Party soldiers? No, certainly not. ...Not like you used him as bait for monsters in the past.]