The enforcer may be the only one with the skills, but don't discount the Wonder Boys, Vander. Talis has a perfectly soft exterior, but he's very much willing to take what he must, and if he gets that hammer of his, or powers it up, you'll see precisely how willing he is. I know you think you can handle it, but it would come at great cost.
[ Reminding him that Silco knows a lot more than he lets on.
Sure, he wasn't the combat expert, but he was able to collect, categorize, and point out the things that Vander didn't. This was the most civil conversation they had, but he knew as well as Vander did that if push came to shove, and it was topside versus the Zaunites... if Vander was on their side, and willing to actually do what was necessary? They were dangerous.
Wasn't that half the reason why Silco needed to be eliminated? Beyond the anger, beyond the strife... if Silco lived, Vander would fight back. ]
Clearly, Jinx needs a reminder of what not to say.
[ Heaven help him, his daughter could not keep her mouth shut. ]
Me? Try to provoke that? Why, Vander, you've got it all wrong. I simply detest you.
[ No, he's 100% right. Which is why he bald-faced lied. ]
Talis has the upper body strength, I agree, but you think his years at a forge match my years of combat even old and burnt low as I am? Tell me about this hammer because if this goes sour, the thing that I can lose will be something I'll give everything for.
[And look at them working and strategizing relatively cooperatively. It annoyed him, but that could also be his current emotional state as he marched to the Kiramman mansion to steal. It could also be that this glimpse of what cooperation looked like was opening a door just a crack of them not continually fighting day after day, week after week, year after year.]
While I expect I should talk to her about that because you can't set a boundary with her to save your own damn life, I actually think she will listen to you over me. Remind her what is at stake.
[He almost threw a sardonic joke that if she did what she was told, Vander would be nice to Silco for 10 minutes a day for a week. He wasn't willing to risk that, and it would blow up this conversation to fighting immediately he knew.]
I can read your sugary sweet fake tone even in this text. You used it on kids all the time, but I see through it. [By Janna's tits Silco, stop lying about what they both knew.] Glad I can continually disappoint you, as usual.
Don't give me so much credit. By the time Shimmer hits the streets in my city, I'm not around anymore.
[He raised his glass slightly as if toasting himself and his demise.]
We're outsiders to each other. It's going to take time and effort to build trust after what happened, so I suggest we make time for that if we are looking for cooperation. Just know though: if one of yours tries a hit on any Zaunite regardless of what they have done, it's over. We defend our own.
[He was left momentarily wondering if his loyalty on that front would be reciprocated. He decided that was one of those thoughts that was best left to two in the morning when he was closing the bar.]
[Jason is quiet as he considers Vander’s words. It’s a reiterated warning. While Jason doesn’t entirely agree with it, he understands where Vander is coming from. Jason can’t say if the rest of his family will have the same level of nuanced understanding as he does]
And how about when Silco and Scarecrow make their move?
Silco is my responsibility. If you want Crane to also be my responsibility, that's fine too, but I expect your people would the respect to wrangle one of their world.
[He supposed that Silco had been his responsibility for a long time, and he expected he would be as successful now as he had been then. They didn't have the benefit of mutual respect these days. And Runeterra was in the balance.
He downed his whiskey in a single gulp as he thought of the difficulties that were on the horizon.]
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