Voice only

[accidentaltruth]

[He still doesn't like putting his face out there, not when it's identical to Miles. So the voice that comes over the comm is grouchy, and entirely unaccompanied by video; the only name attached is "Mark".]

There's a lot of talk about being dangerous at the moment, but... what makes someone dangerous?

[Because honestly, as little as he likes actually doing it- he knows exactly how to kill people. How to fight, how to assassinate, how to leave as few traces as he can. And it's not like he couldn't, in the right circumstances, or like he hasn't, even if it was only once.

But it's kind of alarming, all the talk about justice and not fighting, and he just wants some idea what to expect.]

And what kind of laws are we talking about? Where I come from- there aren't really laws, just Deals. [Capital letter entirely intended.] I mean, I've studied some other laws before, but it might be kind of useful to know what kind of other systems are out there.

Comments

[lets_see_what_happens]

I might hold you to that. [Muttering.] For temporary disabling purposes, at any rate.

[Gregor sighs.]

You're not wrong. But you're in the same cage as the rest of us, at least, and we're doing our best to keep each other safe. I'm not sure if that helps.

[accidentaltruth]

Depends how shielded he is from EMPs, where the weak points are, if there's something that counts as a brain, or a heart, or arteries.

[He isn't going to hack a system if it's genuinely alive, which rules that out, and he's almost certain most of his knowledge of poisons is irrelevant in the face of robots even if he could get hold of any of the ones he knows.]

I studied how safe Miles keeps people. And Ivan can't even keep himself safe from me. If everyone's that good at it, I think I'm better locking myself in my room and staying there.

[lets_see_what_happens]

[Gregor goes quiet for a moment, his lips pressing into a thin line as he watches Mark's familiar-unfamiliar face over the network.]

That's your right, if it's what you choose to do. I'm not going to argue over the finer points of my cousins' particular styles of not dying and their efficacy or lack thereof. But we're trying. [He tilts his head slightly, his eyes sharpening in thought.]

But unless you're intending to disavow Barrayar entirely--which would also be your right, and not a decision you have to make on the spot--you're still a vassal secundus to me as Emperor, which means it's my responsibility to keep you as alive and relatively unharmed as possible. One that I take seriously. To promise I'll be able to keep you safe would be wildly irresponsible of me but... I will do all I can. And if you have need--or desire--for my assistance, you only have to ask. I am legally bound to protect you on top of being perfectly willing to do so, though I suspect the former will give you more peace of mind.