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Once the meeting of alternates has concluded, it's back home for the resident monarchs. Zevros grouses about his alt not being reachable yet. And then he grouses about his alt not being a man for - for reasons. Edarial tries very, very hard not to think about those reasons, and makes a face every time it's brought up. Zevros has mercy on his twin, and Edarial doesn't have to make many faces before Zevros's desire to screw himself isn't brought up again.
He also tries very hard not to think about how all of his alts have killed someone. This time, he's not as successful. Edarial's not sure if Prime's killed someone before the fiasco that was finding him, so he might be absolved for that, but the other two certainly chose to. Neither of them regret it in the slightest. He knows this because he asked, quietly, privately. It was in the defense of their matching Bells. That's - he doesn't know how to feel about that. That's worrying.
Obviously, the solution is math. He asks both alts for their - mental numbers, the factors behind them, and then he scurries off to crunch his own and compare with what they have. Iobel didn't want to have a competition, but - this isn't that. He's comparing notes. If he's - likely to kill someone in defense of her, he'd like a heads up first.
Copious amounts of math is completed. Edarial is - kind of frightened by the results. He gets up, and he goes to find Iobel. Because according to Adarin-math, he is probably capable of killing people in her defense.
royal_obligation
royal_obligation
"Seven point six for intellect, twelve for wanting to help the world and using monarchy to do it and actually manage it, three point five for being systematic and logical about it, two for sticking to morals, four point eight because you're good with magic and trying to figure out immortality with it. Then, token point for being alive. And the - remaining four point six is - um. Complicated."
royal_obligation
"I'm going to summarize it as 'emotional investment in our - whatever it is, coupled with outside factors.'"
He does not bring up the negative numbers that make it a four point six instead of something higher. That would be rude.
He does not bring up the negative numbers that make it a four point six instead of something higher. That would be rude.
royal_obligation
Edarial - doesn't really have a reply to that. "Well - it is."
Awkward. Awkward awkward awkward.
Awkward. Awkward awkward awkward.
royal_obligation
"It's complicated. I'm - I don't think I want to get into it right now, no. Sorry."
come_midnight
"Some. Yes. Thank you. It turns out when I'm presented with several alternate universe versions of myself we become sort of competitive."
royal_obligation
Edarial snorts a little. "Apparently when I'm presented with several alternate universe versions of myself, we do math about our heads a lot."
royal_obligation
"Not - quite this much, it's more of a background thing, not really for - figuring out how my own head works. Except when I can compare my math to my alt's math and discover what's different and what that means about my relationship with people."
royal_obligation
"Max seems to have the best relationship with his sister than either I or Cypress do with our respective twins."
royal_obligation
"I think it's because she helped save Phix, and because nothing she wants opposes Max's goals."
royal_obligation
"It's - mostly how he acted when asked to go get her. The evasion. That - isn't something I would do unless I were sure my brother was furious with me. Therefore..."
come_midnight
"Oh, so this isn't something he's told you at all - I was thinking he'd mentioned but didn't produce numbers about it."