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Post by lewis on Sept 24, 2014 1:09:43 GMT -5
Lewis paused and mulled over the words he was trying to say in his head, how to explain the feeling he had and what vocabulary he could use to express it.
Aware that he was drawing out the silence a little longer than the norm, he said, "No. No, I've never been outside. I was born and raised here, raised here a pure lab rat." Contempt entered his voice on the last note. "I do try to picture the outside. To be honest, I really have no idea. Well, I know what Green and Blue is, but the others say that it's different out there than it is in here. Picturing the world outside of the white walls... It's like trying to imagine an entirely new color, you know? It just... slips away."
Suddenly realizing how unusually melodramatic he was sounding, Lewis said quickly, "Me? Dreams? My dreams?"
I just want to be a superhero, he thought. A superhero like the colorful man in the book and a superhero like Blank. That would be cool. I'd show /them/. I'd destroy everyone who had ever laughed at me or tried to hurt me. Then I wouldn't have to deal with their corrupt emotional patterns in the corners of my mind.
"I just want respect. That's all I want. Respect and peace. The whitecoats could even keep experimenting with me if they simply /respected/ us."
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Post by Jasmine on Sept 28, 2014 18:42:30 GMT -5
(( ahhhhhh sorry i kinda forgot about this i got pretty busy sorryyy ))
"Never been outside, huh?" Tao thought about it, then said, "It's so... free. Blue and green, yes, but so many other colors too, it's just so free, and..." He trailed off, realizing that maybe he shouldn't be talking so much of the great outdoors the other rat would most likely never see. "I mean..."
"I just want respect. That's all I want."
Tao blinked, rather surprised. "That's all?" He shook himself. "I mean, don't you want to go outside, or... or..." Or what? Was there anything else a rat could want? Besides... "Respect and peace, huh? That's... that's good, but... Nothing else? At all?"
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Post by lewis on Sept 29, 2014 19:31:06 GMT -5
(( Hey, it's totally fine; I'm pretty busy too ) Lewis followed Tao's words with rapture. Freedom? Well, he hadn't really ever experienced freedom, so he couldn't really picture himself running as far and long as his legs could carry him without restraint or command. But it sounded nice. "Hm? Oh, yes, respect. A lot of things would come out of it if every creature, every creature in the world shared mutual respect. I realize that it sounds a little... unrealistic, but try to picture it. All my life I've learned, I've learned from Empathy that respect is everything empathetic. Oh, there would be peace, there would be..." Lewis stumbled for the word, "... Freedom, and everyone would become one powerful whole being." Whatever he was saying, Lewis thought it sounded a little cheesy and melodramatic. But at the same time, he knew everything he said was very, very true. If only every being acknowledged their own empathy like he did.
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Post by Jasmine on Sept 29, 2014 22:48:10 GMT -5
Tao was silent for a while, just thinking about what Lewis had said. "You think freedom could come out of that all? Really?" He looked at the other rat, really looked at him, and said, "D'you think it could happen though? Maybe, maybe, maybe, could it happen?" He stood up again, and paced, mind racing. His fur stood on end without him realizing it. "What if we talked to everyone else? Do you think we could do it? Empathy, empathy, talk to them about empathy-" He raised his head and stared at Lewis. "Could we do it?"
Perhaps he didn't realize how impossible that was, or perhaps he did know. Perhaps he did know, and, just to give himself hope, pretended he didn't.
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Post by lewis on Sept 29, 2014 23:17:30 GMT -5
Lewis's eyes smoothly followed the pacing, jittery rat. Yes, freedom could come out of it. And much more. But it wouldn't. Why? Because there were to many arrogant individuals, too much close-mindedness, and in all too many to talk to. But if one became aware of how far a level of mutual understanding could go... then they could pass it on. Like a ripple effect. Maybe him and Tao were the ones who could start it...?
"Tell everyone? Tell them to acknowledge their differences and embrace them and manipulate the world into one whole, understanding network?" Lewis said without stuttering, uncertain of how to phrase his words. "Maybe that rats, an the ferrets, and the other lab animals. But..." Lewis glanced cautiously at Tao, combing his words into a soft tone. "But the humans probably wouldn't understand. They might be scared, or they might just not notice. And it would fail.
"But if all lab animals saw each other as individuals and stopped, and stopped making trivial enemies, then maybe something would come out of it." The lab rat contemplated, not entirely hopeful but feeling graced with an anchor to reality.
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Post by Jasmine on Sept 30, 2014 19:53:29 GMT -5
Tao came to halt at the words, about the humans and the failure. He frowned. "Right. Right, would the whitecoats get it? I don't know, I don't know." He nodded a bit at Lewis's last statement, and mumbled, "I'd like to do that." Gesturing to the scar on his snout and the nick in his ear, he added, "If everyone was like that, I wouldn't have these, y'know? Some rats around here forget all the things they're scratching up for some extra food and recognition are rats too."
Zitao is like that sometimes... He forced the thought down immediately continued to ponder this idea Lewis had come up with. "But do you really really think we could do it?"
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Post by lewis on Oct 1, 2014 19:24:32 GMT -5
Lewis followed Tao's gesture at his scars. Tao had been wounded, once. Maybe abused. Lewis didn't like that. Of course, he himself had never gotten into a fight. But when he was little, his siblings fought frequently. Lewis ha thrown up and made a fuss whenever that had happened.
"It's ok." the rat said, turning away. "it's ok to not know. None of us do, really. There is nothing empathy or teamwork can do to help us at this point. We need a hero, someone capable of overthrowing the white-suited kings."
"Have you heard the stories about an abnormal rat named Blank?"
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Post by Jasmine on Oct 1, 2014 23:42:46 GMT -5
Tao shrank back for a heartbeat at the name before recovering himself. "Right. Blank. I've heard about him." Lewis's phrasing confused him, almost. "A... hero?" He tilted his head to one side, eyes narrowed as he thought. "Not really something I've heard. A hero." He continued to ponder this, this hero. What did a hero mean, exactly? A good guy? Was Blank a good guy? "Is it true he killed a whitecoat? Blank, I mean?" Tao blurted out suddenly.
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Post by lewis on Oct 2, 2014 21:45:47 GMT -5
"I wouldn't know." Lewis said catiously. "If Blank did in fact kill a whitecoat... then I'm sure it was justified." He was watching Tao out of the corner of his bright, pink eye, looking for reactions. Tao seemed suddenly a bit jumpy. Was he a nonbeliever, or was he against Blank for whatever obscure reason? Or maybe Tao was just curious, curious and naive. Yes, that was it. Lewis decided to enlighten him.
"Blank is special. He can manipulate the fabric of the world in ways we can't hope to accomplish. He's... well, I think he's a superhero." he said a little bashfully. "A good guy, most certainly. Why else would he want to liberate us, and endure the isolation and torture for our sake? He cares about us, and he wants to free us and punish the villains for what they've done. And if one whitecoat did somethin bad... Blank would have had to kill him. For our sake. Because we don't need any more villains."
Mulling over his words, Lewis realized that he hadn't double-phrased once. Maybe he was getting better.
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Post by Jasmine on Oct 4, 2014 17:40:04 GMT -5
Tao's ears had begun to pin back against his skull as Lewis spoke. "That's scary," he murmured, half to himself. "That's really really scary." He swallowed. Realizing he was shaking, he forced himself to still, and with a barely noticeable tremor in his voice (contrary to the fear slowly spreading through him), he continued, "Don't you realize how scary that is? He does things without touching them, right? He just thinks, and there. Whatever he wanted to do, he did. That's terrifying." Another thought occured to him. "What if he doesn't like one of us? He could kill us all easily, if he could kill a whitecoat!" His eyes were wide as he added, "Do good guys have the power to do that? It seems more like a villain to me."
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Post by lewis on Oct 4, 2014 21:44:39 GMT -5
Lewis stared at Tao with wide eyes, a little bit shocked and slightly apprehensive. Didn't he get it? Blank was trying to help them! Sure, Blank was certainly gifted, Lewis thought with a pang of jealousy. And yes, his "gifts" were certainly out of the ordinary, but that's just because he was a superhero. The humans also had superheros, as the colorful picture book Lewis had read had depicted. And the ones with the powers were the good guys. Right?
"Yes, scary," Lewis said calmly, tonguing his words in a smooth manner. "Something we can be in awe of. Because it's really truly amazing and we don't see much of that in here. I mean, powers like that, like that are probably common outside of the lab. I saw pictures of it."
Realizing he was starting to ramble a bit out of anxiety, Lewis shivered as he backtracked and stated clearly," But the point is, Blank is enduring for us. /For us/. Do you realize how powerful... and noble that is? He wants to liberate us, he wants us all to be free! I could finally see the outside world, all of the colors I can't even imagine. That's what is important."
(( Oh Lewis you so delusional ))
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Post by Jasmine on Oct 7, 2014 19:34:07 GMT -5
"You mean you think Blank's kind of thing is common?!" Tao yelped. "That's insane!" He shuddered. "I never met any creature with that kind of thing." He paused, frowning. "If he wants to get us out... Why didn't he do that before?"
He was beginning to doubt Lewis, especially when he spoke of those pictures. "What kind of pictures did you see...?" he asked slowly, his paws twitching with the effort of not pacing with... fear? Confusion? What was it that he felt at the talk of the strange white rat with the wires and the deadly powers?
"If he can kill a whitecoat... why won't he get us all free, if that's what he wants?"
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Post by lewis on Oct 7, 2014 21:32:41 GMT -5
Feeling a little offended by the rat's outburst, Lewis's ears layed back a little. "They were pictures, pretty, colorful pictures in a book one of the whitecoats was reading," he said wistfully. "There were words in the book, but... mostly it was just pictures. And they were pictures of a human, sort of like a whitecoat, but really colorful! And this colorful man had powers, like electricity. And he would go after all the bad guys and beat them and rescue the good guys. Well, it was pretty obvious who the bad guys were... they were kinda scary-looking and some of them were whitecoats. But he was a superhero, a superhero just like Blank."
Lewis was watching Tao closely, feeling some cold hostility rolling off of him in waves. Lewis didn't like this at all. What had he done wrong? Had he missed something? Or was this just all new to Tao?
"I don't know why he hasn't freed us yet, but I think it's because the villains have trapped him and restrained his powers. That's why I need to rescue him, so that Blank can save all of us! But first I need to get out of this cage." he added, frowning at the clear barrier between him and the world. Lewis was now dutifully ignoring the fear of the rat. Tao would come to eventually.
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Post by Jasmine on Oct 8, 2014 22:02:12 GMT -5
Whatever Lewis was saying, it just didn't seem to add up for Tao, and he said so. "If the whitecoats are the bad guys, why'd a whitecoat be reading it? I mean, wouldn't they not like that kind of thing?" He tilted his head and continued, "How come you say just 'cause that guy had powers, lots of them out there have them?" Superhero. What a weird word. He blinked, and realized he'd voiced his thoughts. "I mean, there's heroes, but then, they're superheroes? Because they have scary powers?"
"Just think about it," Tao said. "A rat that could kill a whitecoat could do anything. He could have gotten us out way earlier. He should be able to get himself out, right?" He frowned again. "You need to rescue him? But... I mean, how could you?"
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Post by lewis on Oct 8, 2014 23:59:43 GMT -5
Lewis was feeling very unpleasant, unpleasant and a little tired. "I... I don't know," he said absently, with a numb mouth. "I don't really want to talk about this any more. I'm tired." Being around such strong currents of emotion was both agititating and draining, and the rat felt as if he needed some sort of recovery time. Maybe not necessarily alone, but certainly not talking about something controversial and... well, even to Lewis, considerably confusing. Why did he take it as his responsibility to help free Blank? Maybe it was because he felt like one of the few who could see his valuable traits and just how much of a hero figure Blank had the capability to be. He also just wanted to see a change. Maybe even see real colors some day.
"You don't like the idea of it." Lewis said. It wasn't a question, more of an acknowledgement. He himself was jealous, not frightened, but certainly jealous of Blank's abilities. "How about we talk about something else, something... less divided?"
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