un: jaycetalis | voice

[hexcope]

[The voice of a mid-thirties man, who sounds absolutely exhausted:]

So.

Who broke it?

I'm not mad. I just want to know. And have a long conversation about respecting shared resources.

[This is, of course, in reference to the now damaged blue trolley line.]

Comments

[hexcope]

The trolley line.

[hyphanated]

Oh. Maybe one of those birds did it?

...I was planning to ride it today, too...

[hexcope]

...What birds?

[hyphanated]

The really big, tall ones? I'm not sure what kind of bird, exactly...

[hexcope]

I haven't seen any yet, I guess. Are they really that destructive? Even a large bird can only cause so many problems, I've never heard of one toppling trains.

[hyphanated]

They've been friendly to me, but they do seem like they might be quite strong, and I've previously met birds and other creatures capable of that level of destruction...so it's possible.

[hexcope]

Didn't think I'd be adding "randomly vindictive, violent giant birds" to my Etraya bingo card, but here we are.

[hyphanated]

What is a bingo card?

[hexcope]

Oh. It's a... uh... game? Where certain words, numbers, or events show up from a randomized selection, and if five of those things show up in a row, you win. But the way I used it is more like just a common saying.

[hyphanated]

[Taking a moment to process this...]

So does that mean, many random events have happened to you since you arrived here? Or that violent birds are one of many events you had considered a possibility?

[hexcope]

More the former. The lack of previously mentioned violent birds on my bingo cards means it's something I never considered a possibility.

[It sounds so ridiculous to say out loud, it almost shakes him a little out of his bad mood.]

[hyphanated]

Oh. Are there not any violent birds where you come from? That must be nice.

[His tone is a genuine one!]

To be honest, seeing creatures that size that are herbivores is new to me. If one of them broke the trolley, will you kill it?

[hexcope]

Maybe not none worldwide, but I live in a major port city. I'm more likely to encounter a gargantuan-sized shark than large fowl.

Kill it? No. It's just an animal. When it comes to wild creatures, if you just make our architecture or structures unappealing for them to interact with, they'll leave it alone. Even a bird can be smart enough to know it's a waste of energy to attack something that it doesn't stand something to gain out of.

...Which makes me think, why would it attack a trolley, if there wasn't any food on it? As a herbivore, it's more used to being prey than predator...

[hyphanated]

[Attempting to imagine a gargantuan-sized shark, the mental image An Zhe comes up with is something you'd normally see in a horror film.

The topic of unappealing architecture catches his interest though—he can't imagine what sort of architecture that would be.] Is that what people in your city did? They made the buildings ugly?

Maybe it mistook the trolley for an enemy...or someone on the trolley made it angry.

[hexcope]

What? No, no. Unappealing for them to live on or land at. But honestly, I don't think it's something that's really been a concern for city developers. We have plenty of birds. Could do with a few less seagulls, though...

That's the only option that sounds reasonable to me. Birds aren't known for their intelligence either. If it thought the trolley was a threat, somehow...

[hyphanated]

I think most birds were very intelligent though, where I came from... [Then again, they were also big enough to demolish a trolley, so.]

Could it be that it was unfamiliar with the trolley, just like how we're unfamiliar with the bird? [Pause.] If it was someone's doing that made the bird attack, will that person be in trouble?

[hexcope]

In trouble with who? Me?

I don't know if you've noticed, but there's no justice system here. Even if there was, it's not my trolley, it's for everyone. I'm just disappointed someone would do this and not come forward about it. I'm not going to be some sort of vigilante over public property.

[hyphanated]

Aren't justice systems a part of human culture, though...?

[Surely with this many people here they would've thought up their own military or rules or something!]

[hexcope]

This is definitely getting into topics that aren't my strong suit, but I wouldn't say it's a part of our culture so much as it's a part of organized society. If there's a society, it will in most cases form a way to meter out punishment to deter crime, but given our situation here... it's not like we're coming from the same place with the same rules, too. Even if I wanted to implement some sort of justice system, who's to say anyone would even obey it, especially if someone has the power to throw a trolley car, or fly? I think we're all just counting on everyone to play nice.

[hyphanated]

So it's the law of the abyss...I didn't realize the situation was so dangerous here. [A short pause.] I'm glad most of the people here seem to be kind, at least.

[hexcope]

No, wait, hang on a second. What the hell is "law of the abyss?"

[hyphanated]

Oh, it...the Abyss doesn't have any laws. It's a wilderness...that's all I meant.

[hexcope]

It sounds a lot more like anarchy when you say it like that.

[hyphanated]

Is that what it's called? When there aren't any manmade laws to follow.

[hexcope]

Yes. Anarchy is generally considered the opposite of when there's laws or at least a consensus on what's legal or not. I never thought about it, but that's pretty much what's going on here too...