From the Desk of Adrian Veidt

Primary canon is the original graphic novel and the 2024 animated adaptation. Does not acknowledge Doomsday Clock, the Snyder film, or the 2019 HBO sequel series. Mun has not finished Before Watchmen: Ozymandias but is being selective about which elements from it they include.

Ground rules under the cut:

I keep trying to find a singular point where things went wrong, where humanity set itself on the course of self-destruction, and I find it increasingly impossible. There is always another rung below the one upon which I'm currently standing. Always another level of violence and hatred lying just underneath, ready to be excavated.

It may surprise you to know that I'm capable of feeling helpless, but I am. I don't like that feeling, but I'm not a stranger to it. I feel it more with every year that passes. Every choice the world makes to slide back into the flames. Every act of cruelty I cannot foresee or prevent.

I cannot let myself fall prey to misanthropy. I cannot let myself become Rorschach, convinced that the true face of mankind is one of lawless depravity. I must believe that something bright and glorious awaits, if we small humans can get out of our own way for long enough to imagine and build it.

Well... Thank you? I'm sure you're referring to my last public performance, and if so, I'm flattered.

:)

(sigh)

You... aren't wrong.

As well, what is the song or album you are currently listening to and would recommend? I figure a man such as yourself has wonderful taste. Have a wonderful day, Mr. Veidt!

Bubastis has a very specific music taste, by which I of course mean that whenever I play something she doesn't approve of while she's in the room, she tries to disembowel the offending speaker. It's gotten to the point where I've had to have several of them bolted down.

In my experience, the things least likely to elicit this reaction are 1920s big band and New Orleans jazz. She sends a recommendation of her own.

The love you all have for Bubastis warms my heart. You should know that a significant amount of how I write about her is based on my actual kitty.

I made some tweaks to her brain in between the first and second iterations using information gleaned from certain other projects of mine, and lately I've been doing a lot of cognitive testing with her to determine where her limits lie. She's learned to read and execute simple commands on cue cards, and to do very basic mathematical operations such as pointing to the lesser of two numbers.

A specialized proprietary diet supplemented by live prey (hares, goats, and pheasants) that are released into the vivarium as hunting enrichment. Her enrichment needs are perhaps the most difficult and expensive part of her diet to fulfill, due to the logistics of transporting live animals to Karnak.

:)

You.

I thought I told you not to contact me. More to the point, I was certain you were dead. I was glad for it, too. Some of us have actually devoted our lives to trying to improve the world instead of reveling in its depravity.

Both the first and second iterations of my sweet Bubastis were a scientific victory, and have been the greatest companions I could have ever asked for.

She is not only a beautiful, stunningly healthy animal, but one with intelligence on par with that of a human child and a superlatively gentle disposition with those she trusts, provided they do the work of learning to respect her. I often wonder what kind of conversations we would have if she were in possession of the anatomy necessary to form words.

Tea, for certain. I have a tea garden in my vivarium with varieties gifted to me from around the world. I blend my own chai with a variety of herbs and spices meant to awaken the senses and provide a sense of mental clarity.

She likes to be scratched around the ears, on the sides, and under the chin. I've occasionally gotten her to trust me enough to allow belly rubs, but I've known her since she was very small and I doubt she would be so charitable with anyone else.