Hollow

- Dalen Capital, Valade Estate, Morning, 3 DSTR -

"What do you think?" he asked with a pause.

Zaonna was speechless that he had actually asked her a question that didn't regard direction around the estate or if she could fetch him something. Her words meant nothing or at least they should to nobles such as himself. But it was so tempting...

"Uh...well," she stammered, "it's not really my place to say. The way you speak of him sounds as if you were fond of the man and someone of your position clearly has some decency to hold a title as such. It can't all be false with such a strong mind." She played slower now and her foot halted.

She finally connected her gaze to Kline's. "Killing someone doesn't make you bad but there is no right reason to kill anything. But the opposite is how we make our reality out to be, sadly. I don't run anything so it's none of my business in all honesty. I live the same life every day, seven days a week, mistreated and bullied by the world's silent hatred.
I applaud the bravery of mercenaries for I have none. Putting yourself through that, those souls carried on your back, can't be easy and I'll never understand how they do it. Losing yourself is so simple.
Now sacrifice is something I've never been given the luxury of experiencing. Not luxury but..." Zaonna sighed. "Everyone must believe in something or their just another hollow shell cast to the tides of despair. Fight your fight. And if you're alive after losing..."

Her fingers became still. Body chilled to the bone.

"...you feel nothing, after that. Coming to Dalen I got freedom just to be locked in cages over and over for the rest of my life and the worst part is there's no one to set you free."

"I'd know," Zaonna's voice cracked, shaking her head with her blonde locks bouncing as she moved. "No. Nobody is good. Which means nobody is bad. Equal opposites must coexist somewhere in the world," the slave spoke after gathering herself. "Though most 'bad' are just rotten in the worst way. I've never killed or had to sacrifice anything so my words are pointless compared to yours. You must forgive my offense, Baron, I truly don't know what I'm ever supposed to say." Pauses in her sentences gave her time to delve into her loud thoughts as if to organize. She looked to the floor-- blushing - and quietly played the same tune. "Politics obviously aren't my strong-suit."

Well.

She hadn't spoken like that in a while.