He closes his eyes after a few seconds.

"Carissa," he says not by Message, "tell me when he's through."

That does not particularly look like a situation that sane people would not suicide out of.  Maybe if it was temporary.

Maybe those are Neutral Evil, Chaotic Evil, or Chaotic Neutral people and this is the section of the slave market where they sell people who can't say no.

...or maybe they lied to him about afterlives, that's rising in prominence too.

He'll give them this, it doesn't feel like Conspiracy so much as it feels like an Ordinary that is wronger than they told him yet in horribly wrong ways that they have, per his own request, held off from rushing to tell him about.

He closes his eyes after a few seconds.

"Carissa," he says not by Message, "tell me when he's through."

That does not particularly look like a situation that sane people would not suicide out of.  Maybe if it was temporary.

Maybe those are Neutral Evil, Chaotic Evil, or Chaotic Neutral people and this is the section of the slave market where they sell people who can't say no.  In which case blowing up Absalom to stop this wouldn't particularly be helping them.

...or maybe they lied to him about afterlives, that's rising in prominence too.

He'll give them this, it doesn't feel like Conspiracy so much as it feels like an Ordinary that is wronger than they told him yet, in ways that they have, per his own request, held off from rushing to tell him about.

He closes his eyes after a few seconds.

(Whatever this is, if there's a reason for Conspiracy to fake it, Keltham shouldn't cooperate with that reason.  That's a reason to keep his eyes closed, right?</motivated-cognition>)

"Carissa," he says not by Message, "tell me when he's through."

That does not particularly look like a situation that sane people would not suicide out of.  Maybe if it was temporary.

Maybe those are Neutral Evil, Chaotic Evil, or Chaotic Neutral people and this is the section of the slave market where they sell people who can't say no.  In which case blowing up Absalom to stop this wouldn't particularly be helping them.

...or maybe they lied to him about afterlives, that's rising in prominence too.

He'll give them this, it doesn't feel like Conspiracy so much as it feels like an Ordinary that is wronger than they told him yet, in ways that they have, per his own request, held off from rushing to tell him about.

He closes his eyes after a few seconds.

(Whatever this is, if there's a reason for Conspiracy to fake it, Keltham shouldn't cooperate with that reason.  That's a reason to keep his eyes closed, right?</motivated-cognition>)

"Carissa," he says not by Message, "tell me when he's through."

That does not particularly look like a situation that sane people would not suicide out of.  Maybe if it was temporary.

Maybe those are Neutral Evil, Chaotic Evil, or Chaotic Neutral people and this is the section of the market where they sell people who can't say no.  In which case blowing up Absalom to stop this wouldn't particularly be helping them.

...or maybe they lied to him about afterlives, that's rising in prominence too.

He'll give them this, it doesn't feel like Conspiracy so much as it feels like an Ordinary that is wronger than they told him yet, in ways that they have, per his own request, held off from rushing to tell him about.

He closes his eyes after a few seconds.

(Whatever this is, if there's a reason for Conspiracy to fake it, Keltham shouldn't cooperate with that reason and give them a retroactive reason to arrange this.  That's a reason to keep his eyes closed, right?</motivated-cognition>)

"Carissa," he says not by Message, "tell me when he's through."

That does not particularly look like a situation that sane people would not suicide out of.  Maybe if it was temporary.

Maybe those are Neutral Evil, Chaotic Evil, or Chaotic Neutral people and this is the section of the market where they sell people who can't say no.  In which case blowing up Absalom to stop this wouldn't particularly be helping them.

...or maybe they lied to him about afterlives, that's rising in prominence too.

He'll give them this, it doesn't feel like Conspiracy so much as it feels like an Ordinary that is wronger than they told him yet, in ways that they have, per his own request, held off from rushing to tell him about.