keeps_a_cool_head

[In Zero, Scorpius does what he does best: he plans. Giving him space and time to think through what he wants and how to get it is one of the unintended gifts of his cell space, and he appreciates every moment of it.

After several days, he addresses the Barge]

A question to my fellow shipmates;

When an inmate commits a grievous crime, who is to blame for it? Obviously the inmate must share some, but what percentage is attributed to them and what percentage is attributed to their warden, who may be unfit to command them? A warden may fail just as easily by not admitting to something that could be most assuredly out of their control.

And what of inmates who aren't paired and no one has taken the time to explain to them the rules?

My apologies to Alex Summers. While it was certainly my intent to hurt him, he had done nothing to harm me and was simply in the correct place at the correct time.

[Private to Crichton]

Of course, John, we all know that you are the one fully to blame.

More like Alex will follow. You cannot hope to save them all.

In a few days' time they will be forced to release me. What has changed between the time of my entering this cell and the time of my leaving it? As a deterrent towards behavior, Zero leaves much to be desired.

I am willing to entertain ideas of a deal between us.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

He's impossible to contain - we've been trying for years - but he won't be hard to kill. [She's thought of a dozen different ways, all untraceable.]

[Jean snorts as she hands them over. Their fingers brush; her skin is cool to the touch.]

Yeah, we're a bit luxury for a prison ship. [She doesn't mind that, most days; they're about rehabilitation, not punishment. But when the standard punishment for maiming people is a week in timeout....]

Wardens can get creative, though.

Containing him is no longer an option. Give a creature enough time to itself and eventually its dungeon will erode. Only death is final.

[He pauses, to consider his surroundings]

In most cases.

[He likes the coolness, he finds: Scorpius is always running a fever, burning hot. He's forever too warm. But in Zero, his temperature seems to be at least regulating himself as his 'power' is contained. A fact which he is oddly grateful about]

So I've been told. But even I have to admit I'm getting off far too easy. And while I don't think that not punishing inmates to what they deserve will be the downfall of the Barge, I would caution against it. Deals are much harder to achieve when the creatures your deals ride on feel that there is barely any consequence to their actions.

[Jean nods, hands slipping into her pockets. It's nice, she's found, transforming her clothes; if she wants pockets, she has them.]

The trick is finding something that makes an impression, but isn't cruel - and that'll depend on the Inmate.

And what if some inmates learn best through cruelty?

Our prison system is - it's definitely not perfect, for a lot of reasons, but it's pretty good at keeping people incarcerated.

Most people. Unfortunately, Gotham got a lot of exceptions.

Does anyone, really? It might be what they know best, but - that's probably part of why they're here.

This man. Do you think he can be redeemed?

[Scorpius does. But he won't say it aloud. Instead, books in hand, he sets them on the edge of his cot and sits back down]

You have a very...soft way of looking at things. Not to say that softness is weak, but it isn't precisely how things tend to work, in my experience.

No. [Her answer is firm and immediate.] Most people can, I think - most people have some scrap of humanity left.

[A beat.] If you'll pardon the expression.

Of course.

Then he is better off dead, for all your sakes. A prison is meant to contain, but only for those who it is believed will serve a purpose their death will not. There is nothing you have told me about this man that would suggest death would not be better suited for him than imprisonment.

[Her smile is wry, as she remembers the fire consuming Arthas' mind.]

I try to be. [I have to be.] I know the world isn't, but - that just makes it more important.

Please don't think of me as being sarcastic when I say that I find that a very brave thing.

[Foolish, ultimately, but also brave]

[Oh. Her smile shifts, becomes something warmer and brighter.]

Thank you.

[Scorpius nods, turning his attention back to the books. He doesn't go in for baseless flattery: what he says, he usually means it. Now he begins to page through the first one, attempting to ignore the archaic method of housing information. Paper, really?]

You've read these before?

Yeah. [Several times, before her telepathy bloomed and her memory perfected itself.] That one, that's the basics - how evolution works on Earth, the general course for humanity. The second goes into more detail - genetics, what they determine, how they change.

And the third is about...more recent leaps forward. I don't know if that applies to John's world.

Perhaps. Perhaps not.

[Truth be told, Scorpius is more of a history nerd than a geneticist. Genetics are a sore point with him. Additionally, he's not sure how helpful these books will be: first because everything will be in Earth terms, and second, it will likely be akin to a bioengineer of the 21st century struggling to understand Aristotle. Aristotle may be the building blocks and beginning stages of everything the bioengineer knows to be true, but in the end Aristotle got pretty much everything wrong. Without context, he can't hope to make much headway into the minds of humans]

When do you expect these back?

You can keep them, if you want. [There's some sentiment there, sure - Charles gave him to her. But passing them on is the kind of thing he'd be happy to see.

Besides, the words themselves will never leave her.] I've memorised them.

[A slight nod.] That's what the conclusion I came to here, yes. And... [She gestures to herself.] Still a Warden, so far.

For now. Yes.

But I wish you luck on your elimination of this poison, Barbara. Your world will be safer without him.

Thank you.

[He looks the books over again, before setting them to the side of the cot.]

And nothing in return?

Sentient?

Not especially. A living tool.

Still sounds pretty appalling.

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