"I changed because the system had advantages, it wasn't about being bad at the other one. It's more work to run things quietly but it gives you more latitude in a way, plausible deniability for everything. But I don't think that'd actually be on their list of demands."

Do you want a metal piercing somewhere inconspicuous for eidetic memory, and then the spells?

"They're not very clear about their demands, honestly."

I'll see if I can get anywhere on getting teleporters through legitimate channels.

"They are not. They want assurance that aliens with a slightly sweeter offer won't sweep you off."

"I haven't tried to cultivate ambiguity about that. I'm not going to abet sedition in their empire."

"I told them as much."

"I'm not going to stop gathering resources either."

"I don't think they'll actually kill you for it, just be vaguely stressed and anxious. Though - if you push them too close to the line then a misunderstanding can push them over it, whereas if you leave some buffer -"

"I'd like to leave some buffer, but they have enough resources to make misunderstandings both less likely and more retrievable and there are other risks - a single angry person showing up to murder me - which a moderate amount of resources can protect against. I don't think they'd bother resurrecting us."

"Not in a hurry, probably."

"And I want resources for things like 'if worlds are somehow cut off from one another' - for if they do get in trouble with some more powerful aliens -"

Yes, all right, I'll take it.

"Making them nervous is a cost."

"Yes. Just sometimes worth it."

Don't use it. 

Understood.

They make small talk for the next several hours and then Midnight brings him home.

Cor comes and visits the next day.

" - hello."

"I'm going to leave if you say anything despicable. Or in an hour, whichever comes first."

Nod. "What are you working on?"

"Resettling. A few people are tempted to stay here. I still need to name this Arda, map is lousy with them."

"They're welcome to stay if they like, what with the Enemy dead and the Valar friendly."

"Yeah, nobody's stopping them."

"In a way I bet it's an advantage, getting to do all the infrastructure from scratch."

"Apparently it helps with things like trains."

"I'm not really sure why you're here - it's really good to see you but they have plenty else to bribe me with, trains and computers and satellites..."

"They're trying not making those conditional on your good behavior, especially since you're nominally not even running the place any more."

"How thoughtful of them. That was the main stress on Midnight, it's probably the most important thing to do better. - making it conditional is fine as long as the conditions are transparent, even -"