You return to the framed photographs.
Lot of human capital she's got here.
Dozens of people. Who all seem delighted to be around her.
You don't have any photographs like this. You don't even know this many people.
I have Melita.
You can frame a photograph of you and the telephone receiver.
More intimate than a static image -- you create a new picture of her in your mind every day.
I have my photograph of the Crew.
The one you should never have taken. The one that wasn't even yours.
None of these 'life-assets' know who she really is.
Do years of affection and shared experiences outweigh her once having been an Opera asset?
It certainly appears she's pulled it off.
Our seal is invisible, yet eternal. Every day she thinks of you. Especially in the dark.
This is performative.
The display is in their own living room.
What's with all the kids?
As you look, you start to make out men who resemble Eszti's husband. The children must be his family.
Eszti never mentioned a family of her own, but it looks like she's married into a huge one.
That's cheating.
In the beach photograph, a smiling infant grasps Eszti's collar tightly with one hand, a mango slice with the other. This baby doesn't seem to care that Eszti isn't related to her.
Branch
In the beach photograph, a smiling infant grasps Eszti's collar tightly with one hand, a mango slice with the…She appears to have gotten over it.People don't tend to photograph arguments.And is Eszti willing to take that risk, if you suggest that they might?Something for your back pocket, in case she tries to refuse your request.
I'm sorry the Whole Sick Crew wasn't enough for you.
She appears to have gotten over it.
They'll turn on her in the end.
People don't tend to photograph arguments.
She's been foolish. All these people are leverage now.
If EMTERR found out she worked with you, would they use these children's lives against her?
And is Eszti willing to take that risk, if you suggest that they might?
Something for your back pocket, in case she tries to refuse your request.
Look at the wedding picture.
Eszti smiles at the camera, Pascal kisses her cheek. There is confetti in their hair.
To Eszti's right -- a man with a familiar mop of upstanding hair.
Oskar Metamoto knows Eszti?
Alternative wording
Oskar Metamoto!
He beams at the new couple, hands raised mid-clap, visibly moved by their union.
Love's most ardent champion.
In fact, everyone in this photo seems delighted. None more so than Pascal and Eszti, the gravitational primaries at its centre.
They do look happy.
You barely recognise her with a smile on her face.
Happiness, yes, but there's a restlessness too -- like she's uneasy being caught and held in this static photograph.
Branch
Happiness, yes, but there's a restlessness too -- like she's uneasy being caught and held in this static…In her line of work, it's almost impossible to tell.You can tell he's smiling through the kiss, his eyes wrinkled tight at the corners.A model which survives marriage to ESTOC must be state-of-the-art -- featuring enhanced durability and…
She's faking it.
In her line of work, it's almost impossible to tell.
Poor guy doesn't know what he's signed up for.
You can tell he's smiling through the kiss, his eyes wrinkled tight at the corners.
Can barely tell he's an augmentoid here...
A model which survives marriage to ESTOC must be state-of-the-art -- featuring enhanced durability and auto-sensory suppression.
Nice life, Eszti. [Leave.]
You turn away from the sideboard.
Branch
End of this branch
Framed photographs, showing the couple and their guests at their wedding and at a beach with a large group of children.