神

‘Is this a question that you had wished to ask of him?’ No, she had known what he wanted from the world, or rather from the universe. Total domination, control, power. The Zamasu she had known touted his divinity and benevolent intentions, but his actions spoke clearer than any of his rambling speeches ever would. Yet this instance of the Kai differed vastly in his mannerisms, and Moira had to wonder if the others were right about the man before her, or if he was simply a better actor.

“Well, isn’t that noble of you.” She said in a tone that clearly suggested she thought otherwise. Moira took a sip from her cup, as though considering the proposition. She couldn’t deny that a part of her wanted nothing more than to see Zamasu contained. It was a sad, scared part of her that had been born in the basement of their cabin, that still caused her to wake up in a cold sweat now and then. But that part still knew that Zamasu, even without immortality, was likely not an easy being to contain. That if her distrust was warranted, this might be nothing more than a trap. No, she could suffer lacking that peace of mind in order to put him under the microscope a while longer. To know that he spoke the truth, or else to make use of his presence by completing the countermeasures she had been developing since her captivity. Countermeasures that would see him contained with certainty (or better yet, dead).

“It isn’t necessary. You’re here to help us, after all…isn’t that right? You won’t be much help locked away.” Her expression had remained impassive throughout the exchange, but she now managed the smirk so familiar to her lips. “In fact, if you want to prove your willingness to cooperate so badly, you might come down to my lab and allow me to run some tests.”

[ @zamcsu ]

He listened to her, assessing by that tone that she was most displeased with him simply trying to right all the wrongs that have happened. But he took it all at the best he could, and listened further to her suggestion. With a thought placed on what possible positives could  come of such a situation, like testing, and also there was a bit of curiosity that kept his interest in it as he wondered how she would go about this. “Some tests?” Zamasu perked up, and looked a little brighter at this suggestion. “Well, if there is any way I could be of help, I will gladly accept this.” He finally moved his hand to grab at the warm cup on the counter, and took a sip. Grey eyes were momentarily closed as he blinked and soaked up the delicious drink into his taste buds. This was to be a small victory for him, finding peace even with someone who was seemingly filled with strife. It was small, but enough to calm him of any worry. Sets the cup back down, and looks at her again, more questions on his lips.

No one knew the extent of what Zamasu had done, she was well aware of that (for it was, in her eyes, not anyone’s business to know). Still, that they had not even deemed it necessary to tell this alternate Zamasu the simple fact that he would be housed with a former captive seemed a staggering oversight.

“Yes, well…” Moira now cursed herself for having said this much, for she saw very little reason to trust the Kai, even despite his seemingly genuine remorse. She was saved the trouble of immediate response by the long-awaited wail of the tea kettle, and subsequently the making of two cups of tea. Once finished, the scientist found herself staring idly at the dark surface of the steaming liquid. She remembered how often she had longed to fling something similarly destructive into Zamasu’s face. She remembered when she had.

“Take it.” She didn’t look up, but slid the cup over on the counter. “You wanted a cup, correct?” A pause filled the air, expectant, waiting on…what exactly? Slowly, she glanced over. “Tell me, Zamasu, what else do you want? From this world…what was your purpose in coming here?”

[ @zamcsu ]

He was watching her carefully, wondering in this moment at just how complex mortals really were, and his studies with Gowasu were finally showing some promise. He felt that he would definitely need to read more in order to follow closely on the more detailed activities and customs, but that could wait. With this news come to mind, that Gods were interfering in ways he couldn’t believe were actually happening, the young Kai felt somewhat responsible for unnecessary woes. His gaze swept down to the cup being offered, and then back at her with her inquiry, which had his attention more so than the warm drink could even dream of holding. This was more pressing, and he had his own questions forming, but the young Kai could wait further on those. He stared at her with a short calm, assessing as much as he could, and noting of her clipped tone filled with so much anger and disgust.

“Lighten up?” The words left her unbidden, punctuated by an indignant scoff. Of course he didn’t know, couldn’t know what hell his face had given her (whether or not this instance possessed the capacity for such acts). Still, Zamasu was aware enough of his other-dimensional activities to imagine what one might have suffered at ‘his’ hands, and yet here he stood growing irritated with her in an eerily familiar fashion. ‘What mortal nonsense’, she could practically hear the words leave a sneer.

“My apologies if my sour looks have put you off. I suppose it’s hard to forgive my captor, or at the very least, a man who wears his face.” She had started off in a wry, sarcastic tone, but the moment that word left her lips, the mood shifted somber. She became aware of a weight she had been trying her best to ignore, one that had been steadily crushing her for some time now.

[ @zamcsu ]

Zamasu’s head tilted up slightly upon hearing this news, as he wasn’t prepared for such a shocking discovery. The very idea that there was another version of himself somewhere in another time, causing havoc and chaos, was one thing to consider; A mountainous amount of horror to stomach that. Yet, as he could clearly see the thick emotion seeping off from her burning energy, faint as it was, all life had it. And this particular mortal had it hotter than most, which concerned him greatly, now that he knew that in some awful fashion he was the cause of this. There was a short breath from him, a thin bite of the inside of his cheek, thinking deeply on this and how to properly approach it further.

‘Him’. There was something so very convenient about that, the way that Zamasu could refer to another reality as a completely separate entity, leaving him free of guilt. Yet would those two instances not converge, in one way or another? Did he not carry the same disposition that lent her ‘version’ of Zamasu to such heinous acts? Moira would not pretend to know all of the intricacies of timelines, nor that she had enough data to make any sort of educated guess on the matter. The fact was, quite simply, she found it hard to lend him an ounce of trust in any scenario.

“Astute of you.” Her fingernail tapped loudly against the hard counter-top, and her gaze didn’t relent. “I suppose that you’re correct, but I really should have been appeased by that heartfelt apology.” Never had a smile looked so devoid of any positive emotion, edging as close to a snarl as it was. Her tone dripped with bitter wryness and everything about her was taut, like a wire waiting to snap.

[ @zamcsu ]

  “...” His brows furrowed slightly upon hearing her sharp tone, and he couldn’t help but to find himself so annoyed with this attitude being directed his way. The Kai tried to let it pass on by, folded his arms tighter behind his back, but there was no way of getting past this without confronting it face on. He let the moment linger more in silence, before his gaze hardened just a tad bit, and pointed his own accusatory questions her way. 

For a brief moment, something with the promise of acceptance flickered before her, colored by curiosity. His own disorientation somehow put her at ease, made her focus on the uncanny situation before her, removed from her personal experiences with his counterpart. It lasted only a heartbeat. Moira had always been known as extraordinarily calm in the most dire of situations. Why, then, did she seem to hear the shriek of the kettle when only silence filed the room?

I’m sorry. Muttered so nonchalantly, something reminiscent of a parent asking to excuse the actions of their unruly child. How could that even begin to cover what he had done to the Earth, what he had done to her? Likely, he didn’t know the extent of it, and that in itself was a blow to the gut. Would that she could live in such blissful ignorance. 

“I’m sure that you are.” Her voice was just above a growl and the smile at her lips was strained, and even she did not know if was going to press the issue. Troubles. What an understatement. She now found it hard to speak over the thundering of her pulse in her ears. With a glare fixed on Zamasu, Moira stood silent, leaving his (absolutely insulting) small talk to hang between them unanswered.

[ @zamcsu ]

“Of course…” Reluctant as her response sounded, Moira hated how instinctual it had been. Never since her captivity would even she have dared to deny Zamasu’s direct wishes, especially when it came to something so arbitrary (for such things could and had set off his unpredictable temper). Even the smile he flashed her did little to quell the unease surrounding this interaction, likely present only on her end. Zamasu had smiled sweetly many times, and from those curved lips would pour the vilest things.

“I don’t believe we’ve formally met yet. Moira O’Deorain.” At the very least, she had never been one for the flight response, and so she stepped forward and extended a hand towards the face that still appeared in her nightmares. It wasn’t with the benevolent intention of forgiveness that she acted, but a resolve to judge for herself what sort of man this Zamasu truly was. Genetically, he was the same as their enemy, and that in itself could prove quite useful if he was truly to aide in his counterpart’s defeat. If not…she would use that very fact against him. After all, this Zamasu was not immortal, and she would settle for his screams.

[ @zamcsu ]

She had been managing quite well to avoid him since the news of his arrival had reached her down in the labs. Moira was busy, after all, and had little reason to go speak with the Zamasu of another timeline. A separate instance, free of the sins committed by the man who had laid waste to an entire planet. For now, she had to think. No, she did not believe unconditionally in his innocence, not even considering the confidence the other deities seemed to show. But that was a matter out of her hands, and so the scientist focused on her work.

It was late one night when her Irish luck wore out (or maybe it was just her luck) and a desire for a cup of tea led to the chance encounter. She was still awaiting the whistle of the kettle when the door opened, and in he walked wearing a thoughtful expression. It was more jarring than she wanted to acknowledge, to find herself undeniably tense with the anticipation of what reaction he would have to her presence. Would it be anger, or something worse? Moira had to remind herself that he, this one, didn’t even know her.

     “…Evening.”

[ @zamcsu ]

He had been brought to this timeline, an instance that was near-similar to his own, and obviously it was vastly different to what he knew. Still, Zamasu was not about to let the differences deter him from the new goal he had set in his mind, as he had been told the seriousness for why he was chosen to be here. This didn’t stop him from wanting something calming to drink, and having him wander into the kitchen. The Kai needed some time to reflect on everything that had been said to him rather recently, and more importantly over the fact that the Zamasu everyone in this timeline knew of was something he couldn’t really imagine seeing in himself; Vicious, cruel, and diabolically twisted to the point of maddened reasoning. That was the Zamasu they all knew, and he had been sought out by their Destroyer and his attendant, all of them seeking a balanced way to put and end to this, rather than to simply destroy said being. He didn’t even know what they honestly wanted, if that was really their true goal in bringing him here, but he knew he would try to earn their trust.