“I really want you to think about how the phrase ‘emphasize differences’ applies to what has happened here. That’s what all this was about.”
“How does the phrase have anything to do with me attacking you? It’s not like I could actually win.”
“You are indeed correct that you would not win in direct physical confrontation with me, but oddly enough, you declined to engage even after I offered you an easy attack.” Hajime smooths out the long sleeves of his robe. “Emphasizing our differences would lead you to believe that you couldn’t best me. Along the same thought process, emphasizing our differences led you to grant me mercy.”
Ryuk scratches the back of his head.
“Emphasizing differences is helpful in preparation, but knowing what you have in common with your enemy is equally helpful. In a headstand, both of us are disadvantaged. In the case of what just happened, emphasizing differences led to missing your opportunity to attack.”
Ryuk eyes him wearily for a moment. He’s pretty sure that Hajime would have performed some sort of hurricanrana if he had attempted anything.
“Now, I want you to sit for ten minutes and think about the two words.”
“Hajime … ”
“Ten minutes, then you can log in. We’ll discuss it more once you log out this afternoon.”
Ryuk clears his throat. “Actually, I wasn’t planning on logging out this afternoon.”
“You are now,” the humandroid says, “we need to do some research in regards to NPCs attacking people here in the real world. But first, ten minutes of silence, and no iNet.”
Chapter 12: Hanging coffins
‘Radio silence’ is an archaic term not often used in the hyper-connected 2070s, but the concept perfectly describes Ryuk’s brief experience with his moment of reflection. A small part of him hoped for it to last longer, but his ten minutes of disconnectivity ended almost as soon as they started.
Now in his haptic chair, he places the NV Visor on his head and adjusts its strap.
The sine waves begin their hypnotic dance, and Ryuk is prompted to select a spawning location. He chooses the love hotel, his last physical location in the game, and his avatar takes shape in the lobby after a few moments. He checks his stats and notices the change in defense with his dream armor.
Ryuk Matsuzaki Level 5 Ballistics Mage
HP: 213/213
ATK: 48
DEF: 47
MATK: 81
MDF: 24
LUCK: 6
The same hospitality host is behind the front desk, and as Ryuk heads to the Salle d’Amour, the deskman looks up from his book and calls after him. “Sir? Sir? SIR! Your friend has vacated your previous room and is now in room 309.”
“Why’d he do that?”
The clerk wipes his hands. “Sir, we here at the Rosebud never pry into our guests’ activities. Room 309 is where you’ll find him.”
“Thanks.” The circular stair case to the third floor features stylized paintings of idealized romantic couples – Kurt and Courtney, John and Yoko, Barrow and Parker, Stein and Toklas, Jack and Marilyn, Rivera and Kahlo, Edward and Wallis. Ryuk reads the nameplates as he passes; he has no idea who most of them are.
His staccato knock on 309’s door is answered by silence, then sudden thumping, shuffling, and FeeTwix calling out, “One minute!” More than a minute goes by before the door swings open and the Swede greets him, a fluffy white hotel towel clutched around his waist. He looks like he’s been dragged through a hedge backward, rode hard, and put up wet.
“Ryuk! Shit! Um ...” FeeTwix double checks his towel to make sure he has adequately covered his digital junk.
“Who is it?” An unexpectedly familiar female voice asks.
Dude!
FeeTwix shuts the door, harrumphs, and steps into the hallway. “It’s not what it looks like … well, okay, it is what it looks like, but dammit Ryuk, I couldn’t resist!”
“Did you … um … video it?”
FeeTwix’s eyes are currently sky blue, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t black holes just a few minutes ago.
“Pfft! Are you kidding me? Of course I didn’t!”
Ryuk exhales audibly.
“I don’t see the big problem here.”
The door opens wide, but no one stands in the doorway. FeeTwix’s blonde hair ruffles seemingly on its own. “Oh, behave!” he calls over his shoulder.
Ryuk switches to messaging.
Ryuk: You do realize that Thuleans mate for life with one partner exclusively, and you’ve become that one partner, don’t you? Further, most older Thuleans are very disapproving of interspecies couples. So you’ll run into trouble, and since we are a guild, we’ll run into trouble. Had I known that you were going to visit her last night, I would have done everything I could to convince you otherwise. You are like a cat playing with fire!
FeeTwix: A cat playing with fire?
Ryuk: It’s a Japanese saying.
FeeTwix: Never heard it put that way.
“Who is it, FeeTwix?” Zaena calls out again.
“It’s Ryuk.” FeeTwix loses his grip on the towel and catches it just in time.
“So what now?”
“What now?” FeeTwix laughs. “You’re taking this too seriously, Ryuk. Now, Zaena joins our guild and we kick the Shinigami’s asses together. Speaking of which, we really need to meet Hiccup soon.”
Join our guild?
“Have you already asked her if she’d like to join us? Thuleans are not really the guild-joining type. There was only one in my last guild, and that was only because of his friendship with our leader, Sophia.”
“Actually, Zaena asked me if it’d be cool if she joined us.” He lowers his voice. “But since you’re the guild leader, it’s really up to you.”
Ryuk considers this for a moment. Regardless of the social issues, a Thulean in the ranks would give them instant access to the Thulean language – important on the other two floating continents – plus they are effective fighters, even at lower levels.
Emphasize differences. How does one actually do that? That’s one of those pithy epigrams like celebrate diversity or eschew obfuscation. Two humans, a goblin, and a Thulean certainly have plenty of differences to emphasize, but what does it actually mean? How is it supposed to help?
A prompt appears:
Zaena Morozon would like to join your guild. Will you allow it?
Ryuk cuts his philosophical quandary short and says, “Sure, she can join.”
Zaena Morozon, Level 11 Brawler Assassin, has joined your guild!
“Thanks, bud!” FeeTwix hops forward and gives Ryuk a quick hug. “All right, we’ll get some clothes on and then we’ll meet you in the town square. Oh, and no worries on healing potions, I’ll stock up before we meet you. It should only take a second.”
“Got it.” Ryuk says. “You should drink half of one or something before you meet us; you look beat to hell.”
FeeTwix eyeballs his scrapes, scratches, bruises, and amative contusions. ‘Yeah, but I sure had fun doing it. I’ll definitely do that. I’ll save the other half for Hiccup. Who knows what sort of debauchery he got into last night!”
(0)__(0)
A murder of silver Sotlian love crows caw and shriek and snap their beaks as they perch in the canopies of the trees that line the main boulevard.
Several bakeries stand with their doors open to the morning, and the air is thick with the enticing aroma of fresh baked pastries. Bakers’ assistants weave in and out of the crowds, enticing passers-by with free samples and BOGO scrolls.