Network: Beware the Ides of March

[fogboundcrow]

Today is March 15th. That means the Ides of March are upon us.

On this day, the Roman Senate banded together to assassinate the tyrant Julius Caesar, stabbing him twenty-three times.

Though he became a martyr at the time, it was an act of necessity, and his killers acted in the name of the republic.

Though it's unfortunate that Caesar's demise paved the way for the Roman Empire, I cannot deny the allure of its history and the art and cultural iconography it spawned.

I do, however, still favor the Greek pantheon and myths over their Roman counterparts.

Comments

[fogboundcrow]

Fucking Maruki.

[Oh, this means war.]

You do not erase art and literature from people's minds. You do not meddle with the classics!

[seekerofjustice]

Perhaps he deemed it a reminder of things too unpleasant for the people of his world. If someone were to see it, what if they were to recreate it? Or would they understand it at all?

I doubt I would have been able to to make sense of it towards the beginning. I would simply forget all about it the moment I look away.

How many times did that happen, he wonders? How many times was he on the cusp of something, but he was so easily distracted by a shallow trinket, discussion, or other convenience?

How many times has he been the easily distracted and simple-minded fool, so easily led astray by baubles?

It makes him feel ill thinking about it.

[fogboundcrow]

But that just exposes a fundamental flaw in his reality.

Art without conflict is art without meaning. Conflict fuels hope. It makes victories, both big and small, shine so much brighter.

Not that this is your fault, of course. You and Sparrow are both victims.

[seekerofjustice]

I agree with you entirely, but that may not be how Maruki sees it. Maruki has an entirely different mindset from anyone we know, perhaps even different from that of the one here. Even if we were to tell him that, he is most likely far too set in his ambitions to be willing to hear such a thing.

Dove's eyes linger on the word 'victims'. Something about it just makes his stomach twist and turn.

Victim. That means to be harmed by another party... You said that I'm a victim?

He reads the words, and just something about it doesn't want to sit in his mind. As though it has never occurred to him that he was a victim in his own world. He knew he was wronged, but the idea of being called a victim carries a weight he had never considered before.

It's a bit harrowing and confusing for him.

[fogboundcrow]

Maruki altered your mind without your consent. He held power over you. That makes you his victim.

Everyone in his world is, really.

[seekerofjustice]

I don't want to be a victim. I don't want to be-- what is the word, Dove, what is the word that is haunting you? I'm not certain of the word. It is... I don't want to be seen as weak. I'm not weak, I am capable of defending myself, of righting wrongs, facing Shadows and other threats. I'm not meek or helpless.

I am

It's a bad feeling that's welling up in his body. He can't stand it. He doesn't want to be want to be pitied.

I am

But the world spins. And he almost drops his phone as vertigo nearly leads him to tilt over.

I am very dizzy

[fogboundcrow]

[Oh.

Did he say something wrong? What's he supposed to do?

It takes Raven a few moments to reply.]

Being a victim doesn't make you weak. It simply means you have suffered hardship from those who held power over you.

But please, take some time for yourself if you need to.