Ghostwriter

"you'd best get to leaving now," say someone. indeed, they do, they trudge on through the night in rain and mud, belfry and yatterhorn bickering incessantly. dime finally snaps like a twig. "this is what happens to refugees, belfry," he says. he's been against the takeover from the start, and for what? to protect his culture? WHAT culture, the one that was utterly supplanted he was never familiar with? or the one he personally destroyed? well now it's useless. now his only hope, as he sees it, is to turn coat and work with yatterhorn and the reptilian shapeshifters

I have some questions, since this is decidedly a character-defining moment.

Why would Dime want to join the reptilian shapeshifters if they are the ones to supplant his culture and cause the takeover, since he's so against this takeover? He sees hope in supplanting the course that was set hundreds of years ago, even if he doesn't have the same faith in the Refugia inhabitants that Belfry does.

To help the reptilians gain a foothold now and save the planet (while becoming its heroes) would be a different outcome than the slow roll invasion, but not inherently better. The tripodals may be spared, but the world's culture would be shocked violently, and likely not for the better.

This isn't meant to make offense, either. I have admired your choices in this story so far especially, and want to see how we can make this all sensible. Perhaps it's my own short-sightedness.