Record: 51 /Radio Memory
[begin transmission.]
The ticking of a clock, the soft rustle of paper, and a sigh.
A man's voice, not anyone in Edensphere. "Sutcliffe...yet again you disregarded every rule there is to the book. This is the forty-fifth time that you have been cited for breaking regulations, what do you have to say for yourself?"
Juliet's voice. "Not every rule, William, only the ones which shouldn't be rules."
"Do not be ridiculous, every rule in the rulebook has a reason to it. Contacting humans for personal reasons is forbidden, you are wasting time and we're already short on staff." There was a slight click, as if someone tapped metal to metal.
Another sigh, from Juliet. "You told me at least a dozen times." Her voice became a mockery of the other's. "'We can't afford to fall behind. Remember your place, Grell!'"
Those with sharp ears would hear a rush of wind, more metal clicking. "Yet none of my warnings leave a lasting impression on you. It is not part of reaper code to encourage interactions with others outside of our race. It is our job to only gather souls silently and judge whether the souls are destined for heaven or hell. That is all."
"Where's the joy in that idea? Becoming racist, are we?"
More clicking. "This has nothing to do about being racist, Sutcliffe, it is about being a proper reaper. Your irreverence is why I am always going into overtime. Do not waste my time and effort in reciting every rule you've treaded on."
Juliet chuckled. "Irreverence, that's new. You always mention being a proper reaper, but you never say what makes you one."
William sighed. "I will only humor you this one time, Grell. As a reaper, you must claim every soul and pass judgement with a complete and utter lack of emotions. Human emotions only cloud our judgement; the repercussions of making an error as large as sending a soul to the wrong section are too severe to think about."
"So you say." Her voice got serious. "But if you truly have no emotions, wouldn't that make it impossible to decide where to send the souls?"
"No. Lack of emotional attachment makes it perfectly clear. If you so happened to make a friend on Earth and you had to collect their soul, you would be biased and try to send them to heaven, or if you became jealous of someone you would reap their soul and send them to hell."
Her voice rose, a touch of agitation evident. "If you lack emotions, you can't care about their actions! Are they right or wrong-feeling tells you that! Are good and evil now defined by textbooks?"
"Right or wrong feeling?" William's voice betrayed his stress. "This is exactly what I mean, Grell, you cannot judge it all based on feeling! All actions are strictly based on what upper management deems morally correct. You cannot judge their souls on a whismy or gut feeling instead of what is strictly written down."
"Hah! So am I to chain my heart to words spoken by those recorded ones? If you had to kill to live, a life for a life, the regular code doesn't apply!"
"Thoughts like that are what keep you from moving higher in the work force. You must follow ever rule that is written down."
"Maybe I don't mind not moving!" A loud sound, like someone had just slammed their hands on a desk. "Are they so old they're blind? It doesn't make sense! Living however long to mindlessly follow...I can't accept that!"
"You must accept it! It has has been written down and you must follow it!" A sliding sound, like a chair sliding out. "Perhaps a punishment would help enforce the rules inside your thick skull."
"Tch. What do you have in mind? I'm not afraid of you."
[end transmission.]
[[ooc: This is revised audio from this memory.]]