epidemiology | [open] i would give it all

Entry tags:

[open] i would give it all

CHARACTERS: Keith + anyone willing to help
DATE: From the opening of the upper levels to the end of the mission (with caveats that conditions will change depending on overall game plot parameters)
WARNINGS: None.
SUMMARY: A purple bounty! Keith has decided to rename himself Robin Hood. Or, more accurately, he's stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. (mood music)

[All his life, Keith had always preferred action over words. Associating with other people can be difficult. In fact, it can almost be impossible when the going gets tough. Becoming a Voltron paladin had been an answer for him. He could help people. He could fight. He wouldn't have to think too hard about it all, because he could follow Shiro.

And then ... things changed. Things changed back home and things changed here, most recently as a member of Hathaway. There's a lot of baggage associated with that change, so Keith has been keeping his eye on a single prize. He doesn't know how to set up a new government or do diplomacy, but he does know about providing goods to those who need it and helping them out of a bad situation. He knows what to do to survive. Not everyone has that strength or the ability to have someone help them. Simply put: not everyone has a Shiro to help guide them toward the right path.

He's not going to fool himself into believing that he can be "a Shiro"—that's the problem with being him, right? But he knows he can do good. So, he hatches his plan, and calls in for assistance from his guildmates. It's a three prong plan, with different actions needed.

To find out that Keith is doing this, there are two ways. One, he spoke about it on the magitek network. And two, he's doing some set up in the hotel, and is probably stealing some stuff from there, too. The robots won't miss it. Probably.]

a: theft of goods

[Keith plans on overseeing all of the thefts, in part because he doesn't want any of his teammates to be caught unexpectedly.

He shows up at every point of theft in full Marmora gear: a black suit with purple lights, as well as a mask that conceals his face and gives him a voice that sounds like Keith, but comes out through a slightly robotic filter. It also has a helpful hood, because of course it does. Would it look cool otherwise? Probably not.

His targets are specific when it comes to theft: food. Clothing and other goods can be gained through other means, and probably should be. But food? Food is something that he can see that the upper levels aren't doing without.]

Try not to hurt anyone. Take the food and bring it to the agreed upon location. And keep your masks on. We can't risk being fugitives.

[Of course, there are also other versions of theft. Not all of them are as scheduled or efficient.]

b: trafficking of stolen goods

[When it comes to "trafficking," the parameters remain the same. Keep on a mask. Make sure no one gets hurt so there's less of an excuse to follow someone. Get everything from the upper levels to the lower levels quickly, and use designated locations that have been picked out along the way. Avoid surveillance at all costs.

The "trafficking" involves a lot of backpacks and hoods, so that people can hide that they have a bunch of food on them that's being carted down. Anything that's perishable is frozen before it's brought down. Keith figures that "freshness" isn't measured by whether it was frozen first. Or, well, he hopes not. He's not exactly the guy who cares if something's been marked as "previously frozen."

There's a final designation just before the depths of the lowest levels. That's where other goods, like blankets or boots or jackets, are kept waiting. They don't need to be snuck down as carefully, because there's no chance of them going bad. Plus, they were probably mostly acquired "legally."

Emphasis on those quotation marks.]

c. delivery of stolen goods

[Charity is far from a common thing for the people of the lower levels. Charity that could seem suspicious and involves stolen goods is even more difficult. How to get things out there? How to offer help? This is going to be the most difficult task: convincing people to take goods, convincing people that they deserve it, and most importantly, asking what else they might need.]

Take note of anything else they might want. We'll come back later with it. Or, uh, someone will.

[ooc: this is a purple bounty, and the different prompts are loose parameters. I am looking for a thread of at least ten comments so I can meet my bounty, but I figured this would be a fun thing for people to do!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I don't know. I guess ... it was clear to them that I had already changed. That I had already become that leader that I wasn't ready to be, because I had done what I felt was necessary here. Lance just accepted it so easily, and Allura was already worried I'd never come home—it all just fell into place.

[Their easy acceptance of Keith's life here had helped him a lot. They saw the change in his disposition. He was able to tell Lance what he was uncomfortable with, because he had spent months thinking about it and having help from both Rey and Loki.]

Besides, if I tell you or Loki something, you're never gonna make me feel bad for it. So I had time to just ... recoup.

[ A nervousness bubbles up in her throat. It doesn't seem like it's the point of what he's saying, but … ]

Does that mean you're going back?

[ After all, if he's gotten what he wanted out of Hathaway, wouldn't he? She'd never asked what his incentive really was because she always guessed the leadership experience piece was, well, more important. ]

No ... [The word is drawn out slightly, like he's unclear about where she's coming from. He's not frustrated, so much as confused.

It's not like she knows what's going on with Lotor and Allura and any of that. She doesn't have the full picture.

But—still.]

Did I say that?

No, but ...

[ Creases evidencing her own confusion line her forehead. It seemed like the obvious conclusion to her, with the information she has, but now she's realizing that she was wrong. To her surprise, relief doesn't come. She's less afraid, now. It makes her feel sad, in a way, but it's ultimately a good thing for them both. She knows that Keith has a purpose to fulfill with Voltron, just like she has a duty to her own galaxy. A place in the Force. ]

You got what you were here to get. You're ready. At least, that's how it sounds. Why else would you stay?

Just because I'm ready doesn't mean that that's the only thing in the picture. My incentive was never to prepare me to be a leader. I have to see that through. It's even more important now.

[It hadn't been originally. That's where Lance's was better. Keith's was nothing more than a thing that would help the budding Voltron Coalition, but now that he knows about the future and he has his doubts about it, he wants to ensure that he returns with all the knowledge he needs.

That means investigating Lotor.]

It is?

[ She's definitely missing something — but maybe it's rude to just ask people's incentives. She certainly hadn't wanted to share hers with anybody directly. Not at first, and certainly not now, despite how many people knew now. ]

I guess I never asked what your actual incentive was.

I can't go into it. I'm sorry. [If she hadn't reached out to Lotor, maybe he would tell her. But that happened, so he remains distant about it.

So, in an attempt to evade it further, he asks:] Think we can get going? We can talk along the way. It'll be normal.

[ She doesn't take it hard. In fact, she nods readily when he sidesteps the subject and suggests they move on. She starts walking, joining easily in step with him. It had taken her a while to deal with hers too. ]

I've decided. [ Since it had come up before, she easily adopts the burden of the conversation topic. ] When I go back to Headquarters, I think you're right. I can't use my incentive to deal with Thrawn. I have to use it to think about my own galaxy, not whatever version of it he's from. Not while I'm not sure. I'm going to ask them to help me figure out how we can create a stable government that's neither the New Republic nor the First Order. We need an end to this war — a real end, and that takes balance.

Whatever you do, you have to make sure it's what everyone wants. If you ask for Hathaway's help, it should be in figuring out how to appease everyone, and setting up a system for those who both want to be a part of it and don't want to be a part of it. [That sounds like he's telling her what to do, but Lotor's insistence on maintaining the Galra Empire has helped put things into focus for Keith. He knows what he's suggesting is an ideal, but it needs to work.]

And don't think that's all on you. In fact ... I'd be willing to bet you'd be better off leaving that to the politicians. But if you bring them help and outside voices, the reasonable ones will listen.

That's the idea.

[ Getting everyone to actually agree to a compromise, finding a system that's really going to work for everyone. Those are things Hathaway could help with — and that she'll be able to help with more properly after more time here, too.

If she didn't want a compromise, she'd just be asking for help for the Resistance. But she can't say that without it sounding like a dig at Poe and Finn, when really what they're doing is admirable. ]

But the leadership right now don't want to compromise. So someone needs to come in and help them. After Ben and I bring down the First Order's leader, it'll work better. It'll be the perfect time for Hathaway to help us build something that really works.

[It's not Rey's fault that Keith's mind goes to Lotor. He thinks about how the paladins may have been fooled into believing he was good because he took down his father. Taking down one person doesn't take down an empire or an organization. That's what he's been preaching this entire time, even before Lotor turned up.

And then he thinks about Ben's political beliefs. What he's said to Keith. All of that.]

Are you planning to involve Ben in the process? [He's wary of her somehow turning this against him, of making it so that Keith is somehow making it about Kylo Ren when he shouldn't be.]

I've heard what he believes. None of it is very good. Maybe the both of you should sit out of the peace talks.

[It only seems fair.]

No.

[ Rey shakes her head. She gets that out of the way first and in no uncertain terms because she wants it to be absolutely clear that she's not entertaining that. This isn't about using Ben to depose Snoke and then casting him aside. ]

I think we need to be there. Both of us. This isn't just about the Empire and the Republic. It's about the Sith and the Jedi, too. Our cooperation will be a symbol. [ She looks like she's struggling to articulate something else, and then she just sighs, looking over at Keith and admitting — ] It's hard to explain if you don't understand the Force. But this is about bringing balance. That requires both of us.

You can bring balance by taking a neutral stance. I don't care how reasonable you think you're trying to be. You shouldn't involve a voice that only believes the worst of everything ... of everyone. But that's why you should step out, too. Besides—agreeing to not use your power to sway things will be a major statement on its own.

[That's what Allura had meant about a weapon not always being an answer. Even if they don't use the Force, it can always be there as a threat. That's why it needs to be done separately.

He doesn't know the political situation. He knows she'll just say he doesn't understand. But he's heard what Ben believes ... and he's seen how it affects Rey. That can't be good for any galaxy.]

[ Why does this always happen? Why is it that no matter what she does, he can't resist bringing up Ben, and even when she tries to make him understand, he resists? Rey puffs out a breath that sounds, well, somewhat irritated. She's clearly getting ready for an exit strategy from this conversation. ]

The Force brought us together for a reason. This isn't just about a power we have, Keith. It's about what we were given that power to do. [ She holds up her hand. ] I'm not talking about swaying people's minds. The Jedi and the Republic were inextricably linked—when the Jedi fell, so did the Republic. No one's worried about that.

I'm talking about … our purpose.

[ There's something profound in how she says it. ]

I don't know how to explain it. I'm not even sure I understand it completely yet.

The connection you two have. The one that Loki found out about. The real reason you didn't want to take the sword. [The last sentence is a conjecture. Punctuating his thoughts, he draws up his hood. They need to get moving.

Keith makes sure his backpack is on his shoulders. She can leave without him and use the Force along the way if she wants, but he's well aware that he's making it difficult for her to avoid the conversation.

He looks out onto the street, and the path they need to be taking. He waits for her to get her bag so they can move. If she takes the bag to do that, that is.]

[ She already had her bag on a while ago. So once his is on, she sets strikes out with him, but she sort of ... hesitates in her step because of what he said. He says it so nonchalantly, like a foregone conclusion, but it's enough to make her blood run cold.

Though Rey is not as paranoid as Kylo is, she remembers Thrawn. She remembers the panic clawing its way up her throat, the very real threat in his voice that sought to demonstrate power over her. Keith is not that kind of person. That's not why he does it. And yet she feels the same dread reach into her chest. ]

Excuse me?

[ Buying herself a moment. ]

[That moment makes him tense and uneasy. Keith wants to complete the mission, but she's the one that drove them onto this path. His lips twitch downward, unhappy with her. Unhappy with all of this. She wants to talk about going home, about this connection that she has with Ben, and she wants things to be normal—and yet there's everything else. There's the increased paranoia, there's the fact that he now has a greater idea about how Kylo Ren got her to see things from a different light. There's everything.

He's not angry or spiteful. Rather, he's tense and resigned.]

I know you don't want to talk about it. After we gave up on the trust exercise, I knew that we'd never trust each other the same way again. That's fine. We're still friends. But you weren't thinking when you ran to him out there. And you weren't thinking when you told Loki that I tried to force you to use the sword. Again.

[And even with all that, he still wants to help her, to be her friend, but it feels like it keeps piling up. Keith doesn't know how to handle someone hurting him this way.]

I'm not bringing it up to stop what we're doing here. But if you're gonna talk about your connection and going home and all of that, don't expect me to just listen and accept what you say. Not anymore.

[ It's a wonder she can hear him over the sound of blood rushing in her ears. It's as cold as it always is in the heavy rain like this, but Rey feels hot in her jacket. It's not the weather. This conversation is stifling.

That Keith and Loki know so much drives home what she had already concluded long before: that she's the weak link here that keeps giving things away by acting impulsively. And Keith paints it for her.

The fact that she doesn't know how to be anything but honest and earnest makes her a truly awful liar. She focuses instead on what she does know how to handle, which is the piece that's really between her and Keith. ]

I didn't want to use Gram because I didn't like that you asked me to talk and showed up with a weapon. [ Rey says this in no uncertain terms because she'd thought that much would have been apparent. ] I was scared and hurt. I know that losing your trust was my fault, but I didn't expect that. And when I saw what it could do, the way it hurt Ben, I only felt worse.

I understand now what you were trying to do. [ She reiterates this because maybe he thinks she didn't mean it in the hotel. ] And I'm glad that Poe and I were able to talk about things on the Headquarters because of it. But at the time ... [ That wasn't true at all. She shakes her head. ] Refusing to touch it had nothing to do with Ben. It was because I was hurt. You may have never intended to attack me with it, but I felt like I was being punished.

[ Maybe she deserved punishment. Maybe admitting her mistake hadn't been enough, but that's never been Rey's way. Punishing people who were apologizing, who knew they'd done wrong, seemed cruel, and Keith wasn't cruel. Still, coming out with that sword without even talking to her for the days between the roof and that moment, when she'd offered nothing but apologies and willingness to meet him on his level, left her feeling like he saw her as something truly awful.

And now, seeing that this still lingers beneath the surface, she's not entirely sure if that was off the mark. Maybe he does still see her that way. She doesn't want to think that's true, though. Like he said — they're still friends. Surely, if he saw her the way she feels like he sees her in this moment, and when he'd brought Gram, then that wouldn't be true. ]

No, you didn't want to use Gram because you didn't trust me. It's fine. I don't need you to explain yourself. [A punishment. She thought that Keith was trying to punish her. Should Keith not take the things she said to Loki seriously? He has his doubts, and he has very little interest in playing the "he said, she said" game. If she thought it was a punishment, it was because she didn't trust him, plain and simple.

He doesn't need to talk it out again.]

But I know about the connection. I think I know all of it now. So, let's get moving.

[There's a lot unspoken here. There's a lot that isn't said, but he thinks he's made enough of a point. Or ... he hopes. He doesn't know. Maybe she doesn't get why he's upset. Or why he won't trust her perspective on Ben. Or any of it. But if she's going to tell him what she plans to do and then think he won't ask, or say his piece, or any of it—

Well. She wants his piece. It's not that. But there's still the strain in telling him stuff, and then expecting him to not ... understand, or say he doesn't understand, because he doesn't get the Force. She hasn't even tried to explain the connection. Whatever it is. And it's fine, but it is what it is.]

We can move, right? You brought up your plans right before we headed out. So.

[ She sighs, feeling a little trapped. He says that he doesn't want her to give up, but then he tries to slip out of talking about it like this. Says that he already understands, that she doesn't need to explain, but then ignores what she's saying and talks over it. Surely it's not supposed to be this hard. But … they have a lot that need salvaging.

That takes time. She knows that better than most. So she just nods. ]

Yeah. Yeah, we can move.

[ And she strikes out with him.

There is, however, one last thing she feels like she needs to say on the subject. ]

Please don't tell anyone. [ Probably she should qualify that. But she's also qualified plenty already, and he didn't want to hear that. He'll either listen or he won't, and she knows she'll be his friend no matter which he does because she loves him and he's only going to do it if he really believes it's for the best. That's hard to fault him for. But ... she hopes he won't, all the same. She hopes her request is enough on its own. ]

I didn't plan on it. [It sucks to be in this situation. He knows about her world and her politics, and he can't have a say. He knows about his world and his politics, and he can't have a say. Keith is told to trust Allura's judgment, but he hasn't experienced it. Everything Kylo Ren's said and done makes it difficult for Keith to see why Rey's putting her trust in him. What is he supposed to do when his experience tells him one thing, and someone's words say another?]

What happened when you got caught before out here?

I used the Force. They let me pass.

[ Rey looks up to glance at his face, as though trying to read his reaction. To this day she still feels like she can't predict whether someone's going to try to lay the moral hammer down on that one in any given circumstance. And, like, she gets it. It's muddy. But she knows it's muddy and has to make those decisions anyway. ]

I'm not sure what they would have done if I hadn't. But they stopped me and asked for my papers while I was running an errand for Rost just because I had my hood up. I couldn't risk it. [ Especially since Keith knows better than most what a shitshow it'd be if Rey tried to make her cover story work up on these higher levels. She's ... honestly a mess ... for undercover work. ]

[There is no response. Partly because he thinks that's fine, and partly because that wasn't the question he was asking. But if she used the Force, then there was no need to find out what he needed to know now: what had grabbed their attention in the first place.]

I guess—I wanted to know why they stopped you. It's raining all the time here. Haven't they heard of raincoats? [Then again, it's not like the Vakdir need much of an excuse to throw their weight around. Rey could have tripped and they might have stopped her. That's the one good thing about this: down in the lower levels, it might take a while for their exploits to reach the top. By then, hopefully people would be in better shape.

It's an idealistic notion.]

If that starts being a problem, we'll make sure that everyone splashes water on them. Make it look like they need a jacket. [Impractical, but an idea on the fly. It could work. Maybe.]

I got stopped in the middle levels too.

[ Rey looks at her outfit. She'd hoped dressing like the upper class people would help, but apparently, she still didn't carry herself like one. Ben had tried to tell her as much. ]

I guess I don't look enough like one of them.

[ She looks over at Keith. ]

If that's the case, I think splashing would have the opposite effect. I was soaked by that time when I got stopped with Ben. Just make sure you find runners who are better than I am at acting like they belong here.

I'll make sure of that. [Though Keith has his doubts that it's anything about "looking like one of them." There must have been something that was said or done or whatever. But then, he's not exactly the most socially aware person. Maybe by keeping to himself, he's been lucky.

(And his stealth suit helps. A lot.)

Of course, it's probably also not helpful to point out that Ben, with his glaring and his ... everything, could have easily been the culprit. No, for whatever reason, she seemed to make his mistakes hers.]

Or maybe we'll have some decoys if we start to attract attention.

[open] i would give it all

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