o1; audio

[crimsoncrow]

—ere we go. Hello? If anyone can hear this I've got a question that's been rolling around in the ol' noggin for the last week or so if you don't mind humoring an old man, uh. I know this might be a sensitive topic to some people and I don't intend to pry if it is, but I'm curious...

_{[ There's a brief pause as if the speaker is hesitating out of nerves, but he's taking a moment or three to put the right words together. ]}

These crimes that we've all — I'm assuming it's all of us — have been accused of. Is... anyone actually guilty of them? I can't exactly argue 'bout mine when it's true on my end, but we can't all be "criminals" here, can we? What even determines that? 'Cause I promise you that where I'm from, something like... I dunno, stealing food for example is a matter of survival versus an actual crime but the more I listen to the folks who live here...

_{[ A shuffle, followed by a slow exhale. It's still so weird after the life he's lived. Eventually he'll Get It, but not today. Nope. Stars. Can't do it. ]}

Sorry. I'm, eh... I was raised in a world completely different than this one. Having the freedom to actually talk about this sort of thing is pretty new, 'specially in a place that looks like this. Speaking of, I've got one more question for whoever might be listening:

What does it mean to you? Freedom. There's no wrong answer so don't worry 'bout that.

Comments

[crimsoncrow]

Speaking as someone who grew up being made to do otherwise, you're right. It's not something I'd wish upon even my worst enemies.

_{[ And he has plenty. Something else catches his attention though, and for a few moments he stares at the little golden charm in his palm like it may as well have given him the answer to every little problem he may or may not have had. ]}

...This might sound strange, but uh... What's it like up there? I've seen a handful of starships in my life but I could never figure out how to break into one let alone actually go to another planet.

_{[ He may not have been able to break into said starship, but he definitely wound up breaking it. Oops. To be young and reckless again, man. ]}

[starguy]

Right, I hear ya.

[ Peter spent his fair share of years in prison when he was young, so freedom really is pretty vital to him. ]

Oh, man. It's the best! Stars as far as the eye can see -- and all of it is just there, you know? Once you have your own ship, you can go anywhere. It's totally worth breaking into one if you get the chance.

[ He'll even wink there because he has definitely been there. And he approves. Sometimes theft is ok, as he has made clear. ]

[crimsoncrow]

It'd be a whole heck of a lot easier if I could've unlocked one the way they were designed to. Barring that, I wouldn't even know where to start when it'd come to actually flying one so I doubt I'd get up off the ground.

_{[ Unless? ]}

Truth be told I wouldn't even know where to go... Or what else is out there. It's a little daunting to think about sometimes.

[starguy]

Aw, you know. Green means go, red means stop, up is up, down is down, it's not too hard to fly most things. Long as they're in one piece!

[ He smirks. OK, that's a gross exaggeration and Peter is a damn good pilot, but he won't say it. He'll just allude to it by making it sound easy. ]

That's the best part! It's all that unknown, just waiting for somebody to see it! Could be dangerous, sure, but if anything's worth doing, it's exploring the vast expanse of space.

[ He loves space So Much. This is Peter at (almost) his nerdiest. ]