[Masaoka almost snaps back. He could point out a dozen things - that there could be things the Natha aren't telling them, that relying on their power for necessary things like medical care or other technology could prove unreliable. That he wouldn't want to go back, even if he would live through it. Why he wouldn't. But he's never been one to lash out for his own sake. He'll argue for others, if they need that support, but he's not in a position to speak for anyone else in this situation.
He stopped being worth that kind of effort a long time ago.
Any hint of irritation on his face turns quickly to resignation.]
An old man needs time to think. [And that's not going to diffuse the situation at all. He gestures to the room around them.] You deserve this.
[Unspoken is the inevitable conclusion: I don't. When he thinks about it logically, from the standpoint of the justice he grew up with and first tried to protect, he knows he's a victim of the system as well. Not to the extent Kagari is, of course, but still a casualty. But it's hard to accept, when he can see each choice he made, and how they reverberated. Even if he wasn't wrong about Sybil, that doesn't make how he handled it right.]
no subject
He stopped being worth that kind of effort a long time ago.
Any hint of irritation on his face turns quickly to resignation.]
An old man needs time to think. [And that's not going to diffuse the situation at all. He gestures to the room around them.] You deserve this.
[Unspoken is the inevitable conclusion: I don't. When he thinks about it logically, from the standpoint of the justice he grew up with and first tried to protect, he knows he's a victim of the system as well. Not to the extent Kagari is, of course, but still a casualty. But it's hard to accept, when he can see each choice he made, and how they reverberated. Even if he wasn't wrong about Sybil, that doesn't make how he handled it right.]