Tisis

Revelations (N)

I let out a long sigh...I've spent the entire way back here thinking about how to break it to them, but now that the moment has actually come, I find myself at a loss for words...just grand.

"Um...Mistress, are...you okay?" Julia asks carefully.
I close my eyes briefly and without opening them again, I reply, "No...no, I am not okay. Still..."

I feel a big and warm hand on my shoulders, who gently forces me to sit down before Sirus asks, "Relax, Nym. Take a deep breath. What happened at the colony today?"

"I was careless...and Eva figured me out. She knows I'm in the system."

Julia gasps briefly, but Sirus doesn't seem to be all that impressed.
"There's more to the story, isn't there? How did she react?"
"Quite...reasonable, actually. She asked me to continue with what I've been doing thus far...something I did not expect."
"Oh, Mistress Eva is actually a very reasonable person. She cares deeply for the people of the colony and their well-being. Hence her assignment to the resort of social affairs," Julia explains happily.

"...ah yes, you're here too...say, what can you tell me about this...Master Nemo? What's his stance on...well, people like me?"

Julia's face distorts into a grimace, as she ponders how to formulate her response.

Eventually she shakes her head and replies, "I'm very sorry, but you might want to stay clear of him. He...in the starting days of the colony, he ran a very strict 'No Asmodei' policy...as in: 'Only a dead Asmodean is a good Asmodean'. They rallied all survivors and put them...before court."

"...a court, huh? Honestly, I did not expect..."
"Let me finish please. This...court was a mockery. I...don't think that even a single Asmodean was deemed 'not guilty' of whatever crimes they fabricated them to have done. Just the color of skin was enough to sentence them to death...they just went to the trouble of torturing them a little with a false hope. If not...if not for Mistress Eva's intervention, he would have purged all traces of the Asmodei from the colony."
"All...wait, even you?! But...but you're human!"
"That was also the argumentation of the Mistress. She defended me and my brothers and sisters as 'victims', who had done no wrong...but still, we've been branded as 'Playthings' or 'Pets' ever since these 'trials'."
"...so why didn't he kill me when I first showed up? Did he mellow up?"

Julia points to Sirus and asks, "What do you think would have happened, if he had killed you in front of Sirus? Or even just captured you for 'trial'?"
"...Sirus would've gone ballistic."
"Damn straight I would've! A broken nose would've been the least of his worries once I would have been done with him!"

I lean my head against the cold stone wall again and ask, "Still...why not just kill us both? They had weapons and what not...no offense against you Sirus, but not even you would survive a hole in your head..."
"Once again, you can thank Mistress Eva for that...from what I heard, Master Nemo was just about to order you getting shot...but Mistress Eva intervened, reminding him that 'none shall be punished without a proper trial'."
"Very proper..."
"And when he saw, just who it was out there...I guess he figured it would be better to pretend that you didn't even exist. Safer."

I scratch my head and thank Julia for her insights...so it would be suicidal for me to set foot into the colony as long as 'Nemo' is calling the shots.

"Nym, I'm sorry, but...why did you say that I...we needed to go back into the colony? Did Eva demand that for not ratting you out?"
"No...no, actually it was my idea."
"...is that so? But why?"
"Because of your arm, you stupid idiot! In case you didn't notice, we're out in the boons here and that you didn't croak from some infection is a miracle already! You need proper medical attention and I cannot give that to you!"