A/N: "The Conductor" is Phrolova's title within the Fractsidus.
Chapter 6: The Snare
…
The gray of the cloud-fractured sunlight filtered past the tree foliage and onto the grass. One dot of gray light struck the Conductor's left eye, yet she remained still. She was awake; what remained was the decision to rise.
The Conductor rose slowly, letting her braids hang as she stood up. Listening to the wuthering symphony, she opened a portal to her Elysium with a Lycoris. In less than 30 minutes, the Conductor tidied and cleaned herself, ate a small meal, and changed outfits. When it was time to reapply her bandages, she did so with haste. It would be a waste to reverse a whole night of acclimating to its effects. Strategically, the Conductor understood she should only use her Elysium for fights; it required a lot of energy to maintain. However, even with her drives and temptations suppressed by the gauze, she afforded herself this small luxury.
With another tear of her Lycoris, the Conductor opened a portal to the camp where Rover resided. Creating a bouquet of Lycoris flowers to present herself with, the Conductor considered what would make the former Lord Arbiter most amenable to conversion. In truth, she didn't know the Rover that well. Perhaps what the Rover desired was simply that the Conductor be open to their feelings. This was the most reasonable inference from their past behavior. The Conductor's approach would have to be informed by that principle; however, it followed that if the Conductor gave in too quickly, the power of her position would diminish.
Stepping through the portal, the Conductor entered the clearing. There was a new renovation: a metal grill on the firepit. The Conductor vaguely recalled that a new pocket synthesizer had become popular. Considering the rumors that the Rover depleted every ore vein they encountered, it was only a matter of time before the Rover created something like this.
To the side of the clearing were the skeletons of two tents, missing tarps to protect from the elements.
"Phrolova, over here!" called a voice from the other side of the fire. The log bench on the other side of the firepit was short enough that the Conductor had to look down a bit to meet Rover's eyes. "Come on over. Have you eaten yet?"
The Conductor gave an affirmative hum as she traveled counterclockwise around the fire to sit next to Rover. Realizing her mistake after sitting, the Conductor stood again and sat on Rover's other side. This way her left eye was on the same side Rover was on, and she could comfortably turn to look at him.
"Do you make that mistake often, or is it only around me?" Rover chuckled.
Covering her mouth with the bouquet, the Conductor responded. "This concern has never really come up before."
"That you might sit next to someone?"
"That I may look at someone as if they were my equal."
That gave Rover visible pause. They scratched the back of their head in embarrassment. "I'm honored to be your first, though I'd think you have more… friends within the Fractsidus – like Scar."
The Conductor shook her head. "We know each other less than you think. We simply use each other when it benefits us." Throughout her response, the Conductor didn't break posture once, but she flicked the bouquet side to side with her wrists, recounting how Scar wasn't very smart, but he was reliable when someone gave him a job. "I considered asking Scar to assist with the Carnevale, but for something like that? I didn't think he had the right tastes. I'd rather monopolize it for myself."
"That is, before you met me." Rover grinned.
The Conductor sighed. "I only showed you small portion of what I had in store for Ragunna. I will have to save the rest for after you join the Fractsidus. For now, all I have to show you is this." The Conductor gently turned her body towards Rover, holding the bouquet with both hands. She tilted her head and smiled. "How's that? Was it worth it?"
Rover dramatically lurched to the side, grasping their heart. "It's – ooOOoh! Woe is me, this feeling. The only thing that could fix it is… is if I got to see both of your eyes and you did that again!"
"You know that 'woe' means you're in distress, right?" The Conductor let the forced smile fall from her face. "How about this. I came here to talk to you about joining the Fractsidus. If you can ask a question I can't answer, or if you can counter an argument of mines, I'll let you remove the bandages on my right eye."
Strategically speaking, there was very little chance this backfired. Rover lacked all knowledge of the world that they had before as the Lord Arbiter, and nearly no official faction on Solaris-3 had meaningfully engaged with the philosophy of the Fractsidus. Rover could only be unprepared.
Yet for the sake of love, Rover straightened their back. Their gaze wandered to their surroundings. As the Conductor returned to a more comfortable position, Rover asked their first question.
"Why are you okay with killing my friends?"