Conversation · The Deserter
Speakers · 29
The Deserter
Composure
You
Visual Calculus
Kim Kitsuragi
Logic
Conceptualization
Rhetoric
Endurance
Reaction Speed
Inland Empire
Cuno
Perception (Sight)
Authority- Perception (Hearing)
Half Light
Volition
Shivers
Esprit de Corps
Suggestion
Electrochemistry
Pain Threshold
Empathy
Savoir Faire
Hand/Eye Coordination
Encyclopedia
Drama
Interfacing
Physical Instrument
When
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The old man stares at the reeds. His face shows no emotion -- only a faint tremor passes over his features, like a leaf in the wind.
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"What is it?" The old man looks around, confused. "What do you want from me? I can't go..."
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- "I want to ask again about the people you don't like."
- "One more time: what have you used this gun for?"
- "When did you first see the deceased?"
- "Iosef Lilianovich Dros, you're under arrest for the murder of the colonel."
- "That's it for now, old man. Stay put." [Leave.]
- (Now we are done.) "Iosef Lilianovich Dros, you are under arrest for the murder of the colonel."
- "Who are you?"
- "What, specifically, did you not like about what you saw the night of the murder?"
- "What have you been using this gun for?"Remembered · 1
- Pick up the gun lying in the sand.
- "One more time, Mr. Dros -- the Colonel. We need to talk about you killing him."
- "Been looking at anything else you haven't liked?"
- Assess his body language.
- "Those words: 'the future teaches you...'"
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"Iosef Lilianovich Dros, you're under arrest for the murder of Ellis Kortenaer."
"Iosef Lilianovich Dros, you're under arrest for the murder of the Krenel colonel here in Martinaise."
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(Now we are done.) "Iosef Lilianovich Dros, you are under arrest for the murder of the colonel."
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(Now we are done.) "Iosef Lilianovich Dros, you are under arrest for the murder of Ellis Kortenaer."
(Now we are done.) "Iosef Lilianovich Dros, you are under arrest for the murder of the colonel known as Lely."
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"My name..." He looks across the water, then back at you: "...is Iosef Lilianovich Dros, Political Commissar of the 114th Anti-Aircraft Division of the 4th Army of the Commune of Revachol."
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"I am a deserter, a partisan, and a prisoner of war. This is my termless surrender." His eyes turn to the reeds again, dead and dull.
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There, behind them, across the Delta -- the INSURCOM building. Coalition Government Insulindian Mission Control.
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"The Commune of Revachol..." The lieutenant forgets to close his mouth. "Do you mean the ICM? You're a holdover from the..."
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"From the Insulindian Citizens Militia -- the Army of the Revolution. I was recruited in Jamrock in '07, trained in the Ecole de Contrôle Aérien and consigned to emergency defence duties in '08."
"I left my unit on the eve of the Landing. When I returned here on May 14th the Commune had fallen. Still armed -- and ideologically trained -- I wrote a criticism of myself. And resumed partisan duties."
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- "Yes. Recruited from Jamrock in '07, trained in the Ecole de Contrôle Aérien; consigned to emergency defence duties in '08."
- "Yes, I am from the Insulindian Citizens Militia. Recruited from Jamrock in '07, trained in the Ecole de Contrôle Aérien; consigned to emergency defence duties in '08."
- "From the Insulindian Citizens Militia -- the Army of the Revolution. I was recruited in Jamrock in '07, trained in the Ecole de Contrôle Aérien and consigned to emergency defence duties in '08."
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"No." He looks into the fire -- a wisp of smoke rises from somewhere between the charred logs. "I've been on other islands too."
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"I was on Résurrection until they turned it into a spa in '18. Then I was on E48, a nameless sound, until the sea washed over it. Then I came back here. That was..." He thinks. "Twenty-two years ago."
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- "So you're a communist soldier? From the communist army?"
- "I have another, serious question for you."
- "You said this is your termless surrender."
- "You said you deserted your unit?"
- "Again -- you've been hiding here for 43 years?"Remembered · 1
- "How have you survived all this time?"
- "What is this place? This island..."
- "How have you concealed yourself all these years?"
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- "I was on Résurrection until they turned it into a spa in '18. Then I was on E48, a nameless sound, until the sea washed over it. Then I came back here. That was..." He thinks. "Twenty-two years ago."
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"No, I am not a soldier. I am an ideological officer -- I belong to the Party, not the Army."
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"Trained," he nods, "in historical materialism, then assigned as a political commissar. By the Party. These things used to mean something."
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You should engage him about inframaterialism. Impress him with all the ideas you picked up from the reading group.
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No, don't. This man does not subscribe to intellectual daydreams. The communism he mourns is a planetary force.
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"All the real communists are dead. They died fighting for communism -- are you dead?" His voice turns into a hiss: "No. You're an inert lumpen with a gun."
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- "You're a lumpen with a gun." He looks away.
- "No you're not. You're part of the meat shield." He squints. "The human shield that surrounds the fascists. While they kill and rape. That's what you are."
- "You're inert lumpen with a gun."
- "You're not. You're part of the meat shield surrounding the real fascists, while they rape children. That's what you are."
- "All the real communists are dead. They died fighting for communism -- are you dead?" His voice turns into a hiss: "No. You're an inert lumpen with a gun."
- "Yep -- that's me."
- "I'm not a liberal. I told you I'm a communist."
- "You're part of the meat shield." He squints. "The human meat shield that surrounds the fascists and the license holders. You take the fire, while they rape and kill. That's what you are."
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"Detective." The lieutenant gives you a stern look. "We have not come here to discuss ideology." He then turns to the old man.
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The old man spits into the fire pit. He does not say anything more. A jitter passes his lower body...
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The expression on his face is unreadable. There's some sort of interference there... neurological?
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There's definitely something off with his body. Something more than just metabolism, or even cancer...
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There's definitely something off with his body. Something more than just metabolism...
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"You're not. You're part of the meat shield surrounding the real fascists, while they rape children. That's what you are."
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"You're part of the meat shield." He squints. "The human meat shield that surrounds the fascists and the license holders. You take the fire, while they rape and kill. That's what you are."
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"No you're not. You're part of the meat shield." He squints. "The human shield that surrounds the fascists. While they kill and rape. That's what you are."
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The old man does not answer. He tilts his silver head and looks at the reeds -- you see a small tremor pass through his legs.