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(So far, their testimonies fit together...)

What other sources of conflict existed?

Factions. Ormus I have to admit was a little bit more cohesive, or at least could present itself as so.

In the Federation, as in many governments, there were civil sources of conflict. Second Miltia, and thus my Foundation as a satellite of said planet, were an autonomous planet under the protection of the Federation, which some didn't like because according to them we had 'too much autonomy'. Then the Salvatore faction gained prominence which caused friction and hostilities to continue.

And then there was Vector...a corporation that mostly worked with the Federation, but they were big enough to be a force in the Universe in their own right.

(So Mr. Kukai's situation allowed it to be a side of its own in a conflict, making Margulis's claim of being a victim of aggression a possibility.)

You claimed that the reasons you cited for the poor relations between Ormus and the Federation were only some of the issues. What others were there?

Here's where it gets a little...odd. I'm afraid you'll have to forgive me, some of the things I'm explaining I didn't even understand until certain...events.

I'm sure Margulis mentioned the Zohar, right? What did he tell you that they did?

He referred to them as reproductions of a gateway to unlimited energy, which were regarded as sacred by his people -- people whom he also claimed were unique in their ability to take full advantage of their power.

All of which is true, but that explanation is not exhaustive. It also serves as a way to communicate with a being called U-DO, which for most intents and purposes, is 'God' in our universe.

U-DO is the generator of that energy that Margulis spoke of, and direct contact will either kill, or drive insane the person who communicates with it. Mostly. It all has to do with 'fear' and obsession. He doesn't mean to do this, it's just that people and 'God' exist on different planes of existence. As such, it's highly dangerous.

Unfortunately, the Zohars, both the Emulators and the Original, are pawns unto themselves, and have been used as a catalyst by certain people into continuing the conflict in order for certain events to arise. They can be combined with other things, such as Abel's Ark, to bring about the end of the universe.

The Zohar have been scattered throughout the Universe, and the Foundation has been collecting them to keep them out of Ormus's hands. We succeeded in collecting them, but learned too late what they were actually for. Even without being pushed by the Federation, this alone would have brought us in conflict with Ormus, and thus Margulis.

Hell, I still don't know if I know the whole story about that mess.

Edited 2012-05-24 02:25 (UTC)

(I had assumed that the "U-DO" Mr. Ridgeley had claimed was partially responsible for Albedo's insanity was some sort of experimental substance, not a supposedly godlike entity...)

Why would anyone wish to intentionally stir conflict or destroy the universe?

[Another sigh, here's where it gets tricky. He is also very reluctant to say the name he is about to say]

My father, Dmitri Yuriev, wanted to transcend God, and as such he needed certain things in place. Some of which could only be produced through long term conflict. There were other factors at work but I don't know much about them.

[Fortunately for Gaignun, three things jump immediately to mind for Edgeworth: the injustice of punishing a son for his father's crimes, the fact that Gaignun might also be a pawn in the schemes of someone like that, and just how firmly Gaignun once echoed the sentiment that perfection is a lie. Years ago, Edgeworth might have assumed that Gaignun guilty on the spot. Now, though, his questions simply start growing more incisive...]

You claim that your organization was unaware of the Zohars' true purpose. Was that universally true?

I believe so. I don't know how much Ormus knew, you'd have to ask Margulis that if you can get him to give you a straight answer. [Alright, so he can't resist a dig at Margulis.]

[Also, Gaignun was Dmitri's biggest pawn, he got literally possessed by the man.]

Still, what we did know was enough to bring us to blows, causing the death of many people on all sides of the conflict. [Here a sad note enters his voice and it gets a little distant, the signs of someone half getting lost in memories.]

I had no reason to ask him to define the true potential of the Zohars. He did, however, mention the death toll on his own side. (And I wouldn't be surprised if I'm now about to hear of your own losses.)

Hah, I bet he tried to make out that his own hands were lily white. Ormus, and the inner organization of U-TIC has killed as many, if not more, people on our side. Planets full in fact. Ormus is no cowering child in the face of the big, bad, Federation. [Can you say, 'Bitter'.]

(Planets?!)

He... claimed to have taken unethical actions that our own situation reminded him of, but didn't hint at having caused destruction on that scale.

[Yeah Edgeworth, planets.]

Ah...well, actually that does make me feel better that he said that. Maybe he has a decent bone in his body. Huh, never knew. [He's silent for a moment.]

I'm sorry if some things I say sound out of line, I have been used to fight against Ormus since I was little, and with the events of late my ability to remain unbiased is severely weakened. [He actually does mean 'used' as one uses an object.]

[Edgeworth's tone in his next question is strangely cautious:]

You say that you've "been used"... presumably by the father you mentioned, given one of your earlier statements. Given other things I've been told, I consider myself obligated to ask: was the entire intended point of your existence to be a pawn?

[The silence on the other end of the line at this question is much longer and heavier then the others so far in the conversation.]

I...yes. [He really does not want to admit this. It hurts to admit it outside of his own mind. And coming to Prospero, he'd really been trying not to think about it.]

[Edgeworth is silent for a long moment himself. Even after what Allen had said, that Gaignun and Albedo alike were created as super-soldiers, it was another thing entirely to hear that there was so much more to Gaignun's subjugation than that. The prosecutor himself had been raised for years with ill intent, his ego fattened so that he might yield the richest possible revenge when slaughtered, but he hadn't been conceived for any such goal.

There are many more questions he could ask about the conflict, many ways he could steer the conversation away from this obviously uncomfortable point and still learn... but he wasn't prosecuting anyone here. It wasn't his place to judge others for what happened, or what they believed happened, in their original lives; he'd come to that conclusion some time ago, if only because there was no way he could produce the necessary evidence to do so. Even if it was, war crimes were far out of his league. All that ultimately mattered here is whether he could trust Gaignun, Margulis, or both. Anything else worth saying, therefore, had to prioritize uncovering the truth of Gaignun's trustworthiness here and now.]

...Is there a reason why you would admit such a thing to me?

Because I'm sick of lying about it. For fourteen years I had thought I had escaped that fate, but in truth I didn't even know the half of what had been intended for me.

I ran from what I knew of my design, denied it, lied about it, and in the process I set up those I loved for pain when I only wanted them to know happiness. I thought I was a man, with a will, that I had changed the path set out for me.

...Being a man with a will does not necessarily spare one from the possibility of being played for a fool, Mr. Kukai.

I know...but if anyone's actions were going to lead me into ruin, I would rather them be of my own doing. I don't like being made into a marionette.

[He exhales sharply, clearly regathering his emotional forces. That had been a leak in a very carefully maintained dam and he was bound and determined not to let another crack show.]

All that I've told you Edgeworth, is the truth. If I have lied anywhere, it is only by accidental omission. Tell me, what else did Margulis say?

[He wants to know how much damage control he's going to have to do.]

Edited (grammer issues) 2012-05-25 03:55 (UTC)

You need not state the obvious, Mr. Kukai -- no one enjoys learning that they've been manipulated.

Other noteworthy claims that he made were that Ormus did not make the first move, that they'd been pressured to surrender their only planet for some time, and that the Federation opened fire on retreating Ormus ships.

[Groan, of course. Still, this is a less emotional topic for him and he's glad for the change.]

Like I said, the Federation considers Ormus a threat because they are not under their control. He does actually have a valid claim when he mentions that.

[He didn't really like either side of the war, though the Foundation was technically on the Federation side. The Federation didn't really like him either, trying the Foundation and Second Miltia for treason indeed! Trigger happy bastards.]

As for the retreating ships...they were circling like vultures around the debris field from a destroyed Federation science ship. The Durandal was sent to investigate what had happened since we picked up on their distress signal. Once it got there, the Durandal picked up the signal that a Zohar may have been in the area, giving the Ormus ships motive. All of this was in a period of tension and hostility with Ormus.

[He's not trying to make excuses, but he is trying to make the overall climate clear. It was definitely a cold war situation but he doesn't have that term to use.]

So you were, perhaps, too quick to judge in that particular situation?

Looking at it now, with the perfect vision of hindsight, I would be willing to concede to that. However at the time it was valid assumption. [He just won't mention to Edgeworth that the commander of the Durandal, his brother Jr., had a history of being somewhat rash and a little too happy to go hunt U-TIC and Ormus.] The Woglinde may have been on a science mission, but it would have taken a lot of fire power to have taken out, so it was either Ormus or the Gnosis. Ormus happened to have been there.

We found out later, from a few of the survivors that one of our contracted ships picked up, that it had been the Gnosis that had attacked the ship.

[Well, that was distressingly reminiscent of how he operated early in his career...]

Assumptions, however valid they might seem, are never sufficient reason to end or ruin lives.

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