It’s time to cut and run.
She’s taken what she can from this organisation that pretended to value her for her skills but ultimately viewed her as just another tool. She will miss the power and prestige of being master of her own voidship. But it was never really hers. Evelyn has her twisted grip too deep into her crew. Ariadne was lied to. She was never really trusted. Never really valued.
Well, she will have the last laugh on that point.
There are enough who are loyal to her. Enough who respect her authority and fear her wrath. And some of them are terrible and powerful. And some of them crave destruction, even at the cost of their own souls. She has set her pawns in motion. When the Warp Core blows, it will not matter who was whose agent. And everyone will be reminded of just how fragile their mortal laws and institutions are, and how terrible the reality just beneath the thin skin of the world.
It’s funny, really. If Evelyn had just appreciated her, perhaps she would have remained asleep. Perhaps she would still have her expert assistance in the pointless campaign to protect the Imperium’s many ungrateful worlds from their own corruption. But her eyes are wide open now. And she will not waste any more of her life on this.
On her way out of the cell block, 068′s number catches her eye. She smiles a little. She’ll miss the way he cringes, how hard he tries to please her. Why can’t they all break so neatly? For a moment, she entertains the idea of dragging him along with her. Her own personal pet. A souvenir of her time in the Inquisition. And then she thinks: Why not? If I want to, maybe I should just do it. She hasn’t packed for two. But then, he doesn’t need much. She can give him minimal rations, and going a little hungry herself won’t do her any harm. It would be crazy to make such a dramatic change to her plan at this late stage... but she is feeling a little crazy today.
She unlocks the door, then kicks it open just because she can. It bangs noisily and provokes a gratifyingly panicked startle. “Get up, scum,” she tells him, grinning. “We’re going on a trip.”
