Besca had been worried about this. Part of her had known that Quinn’s display of mercy wouldn’t just be a single, isolated incident of sympathy. She was too kind for that. Really, she was too kind for [i]any[/i] of this. Piloting had a unique and repulsively effective way of wringing the humanity out of someone, especially when it came to dueling. Cruelty was indeed an apt word for it. Those who stepped into the ring and lost were rarely ever seen as people by the victors, more as cisterns to fill with the consequences of defeat. 

It had managed to effect Besca as well, much to her shame. She never gave much thought to the people Dahlia had beaten in the past, though the fact that she was young and most of her opponents had been older made it…easier to accept. She had felt [i]some[/i] remorse at the idea that Quinn would have to kill Roaki, but only after Quinn had brought up her own misgivings about it—and even then, the stunt at the feast had left her sour. 

“[color=gray]It wasn’t my call. The Board doesn’t want an enemy combatant loose on the station. They think she might get into one of the Saviors, I guess—[/color]” she held up a preemptive hand. “[color=gray]I know how ridiculous it sounds. Everyone does. But the Board pays their wages, not me, so if they say she stays locked up it’s just…it’s how it’s gotta be for now.[/color]”

“[color=ffe63d]I'm going to see her today. Soon.[/color]”

That shouldn’t have surprised her either. Despite all her bluster, Roaki was perhaps less capable of violence than any other person onboard; even still, Besca wasn’t thrilled at the idea of them being in a room together, whether there were bars between them or not. 

But she saw the look in Quinn’s eye, had seen it in the war room the week before the duel. She knew there’d be no point in trying to deny her. 

“[color=gray]I’ll…make sure you’ve got the clearance,”[/color] she said, and made for the door. “[color=gray]In the meantime, I should get back to work. Your, uh, performance in Casoban has brought us a [i]lot[/i] of…interest. Anyway, Deelie should be out of here by tonight, so, I’ll see you both for dinner.[/color]”

And with that she left them. Dahlia leaned with a groan onto the propped-up pillows, held out her hand to fiddle with Quinn’s hair. She was quiet for a moment, still unused to seeing her so [i]wound[/i]. 

“[color=skyblue]Hey,[/color]” she said. “[color=skyblue]I’m really proud of you, y’know that? I don’t care what anyone else says. You did good.[/color]”