008 Things Aquired - [text;]

[ossifragant]

So here's a question for all of you. What's the furthest you've been from home? Before coming here, I mean. This place doesn't count. I want to know how far people have traveled before coming here.

The name of the place you're from, the name of the place you like going. What your favorite city is called. Things like that.

I've always liked traveling. But I used to spend years in one place, even so. Always found myself drawn back to where I was born. It's one of those interesting things about people. I don't exactly miss the place, but I do find myself thinking about it sometimes. What it would be like if we could go back with memories of this place instead of forgetting everything.

So there's a second part of my question, I guess.

Say you go home, but you remember everything from here. What would you do with that information?

What if you arrived home at a time before the last thing you remember?

Comments

[ossifragant]

Of course.

[explosivecombat]

North City. Again, saying that I like it feels like an overstatement, but it's familiar, in the way that few things are. I know the people there; I could probably find my way around it blindfolded and with my ears stopped, and I still remember the basic schedule the city itself runs on.

As for places I'm drawn to...you'll probably think it horribly morbid, but after the war ended, I was interested in returning to Ishval someday.

[ossifragant]

A shame I've never been to North City. I would like to see it.

No, I don't find it that morbid.

[Should.... he.

He doesn't exactly have a normal person's perspective on what's morbid.]

I was aware of it, but it was never a place I saw myself.

[explosivecombat]

[...yeah um

this one didn't go in with the mentality of "commit war crimes because fuck yeah"

he kind of showed up and ended like half the area

...one day he'll have to show you what his alchemy does, because it sure as shit ain't "small centralized explosions that may or may not involve people"]

I have fond memories of it, though that's obviously not the sort of thing I can voice in polite company for various reasons.

[ossifragant]

[Well, that would be something!

It's not that Greed thinks war crimes are awesome so much as he's rather apathetic about the whole slaughtering of peoples thing. That, and he spent extensive time with the guy who thought turning people into bombs was fucking fantastic, thank you.]

I can't say the memories of my missions are fond, exactly, but at some point we should trade stories.

[private from here on]

[explosivecombat]

[Aaaaaand under a lock this goes - not for his answer to that, but rather for what's coming afterwards.]

I'd like that, actually.

Now, as for the second part to all this - might I ask what brought that on?

[ossifragant]

I've been thinking about a person in my world and how what I did to her was rather unfair.

I don't know what happened to her and it bothers me.

[explosivecombat]

"What you did to her"...?

[ossifragant]

When the Devil's Nest was attacked, most of my people were killed, save for one person, a woman named Martel. Having her and Alphonse continue to run with me would have ended badly so I left them alone in the woods. I told her she was on her own if I wasn't back by morning.

I knew I wasn't going to come back.

[explosivecombat]

...how awkward.

[Kimblee.]

[ossifragant]

[At least he appreciates that reaction better than "I'm sorry" or some other form of sympathy.]

It's been weighing on my mind. There's nothing I can do about it and there is no solution, but I thought I might as well ask anyway.

[explosivecombat]

[...was he...supposed to be sympathetic for any reason there??

you know what you did, you owned what you did, you owned that you fucked up, why should he feel sympathy toward you for fucking up-

...he's missing something, isn't he.]

Unfortunately, my own answer is a bit boring; I don't think I would willingly change anything that happened.

[ossifragant]

[Maybe.

Other people seem to think that it's a reason to be sympathetic. It doesn't make much of a difference, really.]

I can respect that.

May I ask why?

[explosivecombat]

Over the course of my life, I've been able to start chains of events that have changed the world. Even in death, I was able to pull it off one last time.

In having things play out exactly as they did, I was able to have a lasting impact on the world and those in it. Why should I want to change that, or regret anything that happened?

[ossifragant]

I understand. There aren't many people who can say that they've changed the world on their own.

[explosivecombat]

That's why I started working with the Homunculi, you know - the fact that not many people can say that.

Humanity was refusing to realize its potential to do exactly that; instead, as a whole humans were willing to let themselves stagnate, to become complacent with their lot. They've forgotten what it's like to have to fight for their survival; they've taken their inheritance of the world as a given right rather than a privilege that can be taken away at any time, should a strong enough opposing force present itself.

The Homunculi were willing to let me see and take part in that hypothetical war against humanity in exchange for my service.

[ossifragant]

That would be a tempting offer.

And you had the means to do it, too. I don't doubt that for a second because otherwise they wouldn't have bothered. I would certainly like to see what your alchemy does. I know it's different from I know but that doesn't really matter to me.

I've always liked seeing what people are capable of doing.

[explosivecombat]

If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were flattering me.

[...Kimblee, mock-flirting with Greed never ends well for you, you need to learn this.]

[ossifragant]

[Kimblee....

How many times have you gotten hit on by now?]

Maybe. Or maybe I really like destructive alchemy.