#neth is in many ways the demonstrative figure for how much oltyx's surroundings have broken him

[magistralucis]

Every time I think about Neth I want to eat my hands.,,.. even accounting for his troubles Oltyx King was No Good Incredibly Fucking Terrible to that dude!!! It's maddening because Neth triggers Oltyx's compassion almost as often as Yenekh does, Oltyx just feels inherently entitled to treat him like dirt because 1) Neth's station is lowly, 2) his engrams are degraded, and 3) he's a constant reminder of Sedh which Oltyx holds three centuries' worth of rage about. Oltyx finds the idea Neth achieving anything ridiculous, even reading this contempt into other people's reactions (e.g. 'Pakhet’s razor-edged faceplate did not even twitch in the degraded old soldier’s direction'), and acts like every good thing Neth does is against expectations (e.g. 'Neth had only underperformed slightly', 'even Neth had managed to contribute'). Oltyx fundamentally refuses to believe in this man because he can't face what Neth represents in his broken mind: his exile, then the loss of hope for his dynasty. When in reality, every other word out of Neth is hope!

Sure, deep down Oltyx doesn't feel great about treating Neth that way. He does find merit in Neth if he's allowed to think about it, and ultimately, Neth's end was a choice Neth himself made. But if every positive thought you've had about someone only appeared in hindsight, and if you never expressed said thoughts before that person was gone, that's a bell you can never unring. You only get so many honest loyal supporters with no blood pit in their closets in TDK, and in a world where said blood pit supporters are the best you have, to not do right by someone like Neth is an injustice. Neth was designed to be a morality pet and yet could not be saved and got plasma blasted for his trouble 😭😭😭

#warhammer 40k #wh40k #the twice dead king #oltyx #neth #necrons #necron #i know oltyx has a lot going on but imo his disdain of neth is genuinely repugnant #especially since -his own minds- do not want him to disdain neth and fall squarely on the side of mercy/grace #neth is in many ways the demonstrative figure for how much oltyx's surroundings have broken him #oltyx has a surprisingly large well of compassion for him but it's locked behind layers and layers of asshole behaviour #because above all it is 'correct' that a royal should disdain his inferiors... and unlike yenekh neth can't ask forgiveness later #yenekh is at least part of the sedhian triumvirate. neth can only ever be someone oltyx's will is unilaterally imposed on #and oltyx is often willfully unkind to him not just in actions but in his deepest thoughts #oltyx king does need to be held accountable for that i don't make the rules i'm sorry