"I don't know if there's a human equivalent either."

"They're both sufficiently attentive to public image that I don't tend to infer things from their public presentation except about what they want us to know."

"I guess."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm... unharmed. But troubled."

Nod. "We're working on immortality now. We'll send it south if that's where you end up."

"Hopefully you would also send some south even if I weren't there."

"Well, yeah, but these are going to take about a year of engineer effort each, they'll get distributed internally first by default."

"Fair enough."

"No one should die. But it's easier to get people to put in long hours for their neighbors, their friends..."

"Completely understood. I can't think of an obvious way destroying things could even help with that."

"I remain excited about the potential for worldhopping and stacking things until we can just cheat."

"Me too."

He goes back to his interrupted notes.

Cor takes that as a dismissal. Goes back to his room and thinks more.

No one interrupts him.

Eventually he sleeps on it. Wakes up.

Someone brings breakfast.

That's nice of them.

And after breakfast:

Busy? he asks Maitimo.

No.

If you want to come up I have some questions. Or I could find you.

On my way.

He knocks a minute later.

Cor lets him in.

"Morning."

"Morning. So this has been... complicated."