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thirstology2018-04-01 12:05 am
futurologists) wrote in thirstology2018-04-01 12:05 am
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TEST DRIVE MEME
FANTASTIC MR. FOX  Welcome to Azeria, a small single-biome planet covered almost entirely by deep, mossy forests. The natives of Azeria, a sapient foxlike species called Vulphytes, have reached out to Hathaway for help in repelling a planetary invasion. Other Vulphyte tribes have sent word of dangerous aliens descending in silver machines and laying waste to the forest, killing and capturing Vulphytes and animals in their wake. Hathaway analysts have calculated that the Merging is to blame for this sudden invasion; before, these two nearly identical universes didn't see each other, but now that they are one, these strangers are suddenly planetary neighbors. The aliens, seeing a new planet, must be searching for colonization prospects, while the Vulphytes are helpless against their spacefaring weaponry. ▸ FOR NEW VOLUNTEERS.On greeting the Hathaway agents, the Vulphytes will initially be very awkward and surprised, or as awkward and surprised as sapient foxes can appear. The Vulphytes speak telepathically, and eventually a spokesfox explains the cause of their discomfort: the invading aliens are humans, just like most of you. ▸ PROMPTS Your mission is simple: protect the Vulphytes, forests, and native animals from the invading humans. It's not necessary to kill all the invaders (unless you want to), simply keep them from taking the planet for their own and do a good enough job to persuade them never to come back. Of course, the invaders are a bit... forceful in their methods, so it's up to you.   The Vulphytes live in a cluster of burrows which are unfortunately not large enough for anything human-sized to visit, but the presence of non-aggressive aliens (that's you!) is enough to get the majority of them to pop out and curiously observe. The Vulphytes are variably black, grey, or red, with fur transitioning to moss along their backs; animals you might see in the forest, including deer, rabbits, and owls, have a similarly moss-covered look. The Vulphytes will take awhile to warm up to anyone who is human (or those who visibly look human), their telepathic tones suspicious as they ask questions about their loyalties, where they're from, and what their homeworlds are like. Those who are clearly not human will receive a much warmer reception, the Vulphytes asking curious questions and the Vulphyte kits trailing behind in fuzzy little rows. When the invaders' silver machines -- spaceships -- become visible in the sky, through breaks in the tree canopy, the Vulphytes look skyward and begin to howl. It's a pre-battle ritual, one of them explains, and characters are invited to join in: howl to the sky, to your enemies, and get ready to fight. TWO ▸ THE INVASION. The silver spaceships of the invaders crash down through the trees, sending animals fleeing in all directions. The Vulphytes stay put, snarling in the direction of the noise and waiting for the invaders to come to them. If you'd like, you can rush forward and head them off -- or stay and fight alongside the foxes. Just as the Vulphytes claimed, the invaders are human. They are dressed in armored space suits, the visors on their helmets obscuring their faces and reflecting the forest all around. Their weapons are various types of laser guns, though a few are holding axes that have laser blades, which they use to start chopping down trees as their compatriots march toward the Vulphyte dens. The invaders are surprised to see people here, but they're not interested in talking: they open fire on anyone they see, not recognizing any of the recruits as their people and thus pegging them immediately as enemies. Though they're aggressive, they're not suicidal; if a single invader encounters too much violence or are outnumbered, they'll run back to their compatriots for reinforcements, so it's best to dispatch them quickly (or prevent them for running for help in some other way). Once the invaders reach the Vulphyte dens, the foxes fight viciously, swarming individuals in a flurry of claws and snarling teeth. Kill the invaders or simply give them enough trouble to make them retreat for good, it's up to you. But either way, look after your furry/mossy hosts; despite their telepathic way of communication, the Vulphytes don't possess any magical abilities, so they'll need to be looked after in the face of laser weapons. THREE ▸ BABYSITTER'S CLUB. The baby Vulphytes are in the greatest amount of danger from the invading humans, being entirely unable to defend themselves and uncertain of what's actually going on. Hathaway has been tasked with rescuing them from their dens and whisking them away to safer areas away from the fighting where they can be cared for until the fighting is over. The only problem is that baby Vulphytes are... well, babies. They're quite upset by all the ruckus, yowling in a way that resembles crying, and aren't exactly happy to be taken away by strangers they don't know. In fact, some of them might try to make a great escape, so you'd better be quick! Those who make it to a safe area will need consoling and, once that's done, entertainment. They'll also need their caretakers to make sure no invaders sneak up on them -- since some are hidden in the woods. It's a big job, but you can handle it, right? FOUR ▸ VICTORY CELEBRATIONS. Once the invaders are finally chased off, everyone gathers together to celebrate. The Vulphytes bow (as well as a fox can) as the team enters and apologize for their uncertainty before; they see now that many of you are nothing like the aliens who threatened them, despite your similar looks. They'd like you all to stay and celebrate, if you have time. The celebrations are... a bit different than most might be used to; it's definitely not a human party. There are games with handmade balls of packed moss, which the Vulphytes seem to love. In fact, they go crazy for Fetch, a game they were never introduced to before due to their tragic lack of opposable thumbs. They "sing" for the team in howls, a rare example of adults not communicating telepathically. As for the team, they receive a congratulatory message from Imogen on their magitek suggesting they take the rest of the celebration to meet and greet with the unfamiliar faces. There won't be much time to do so back at Headquarters, I'm afraid, she adds. Drakstaden awaits, darlings! FIVE ▸ CHIT-CHAT. It's your standard network option. Make battle plans, chat about how cute the foxes are, or share good hiding places. No matter what, you get one username to identify you and one only -- if you don't enter one, it will default to your real name (for example, Voldemort's would be tomriddle.) Choose wisely... or make it assfarts69, if that's your thing. More information on the jewelcomms can be found on the devices guide. SIX ▸ WILDCARD. Do whatever the heck you want! Go pick wildflowers. Climb a tree. Hunt animals. Loot innocent fox dens, you monster. The world is your oyster. ▸ OOC NOTES Welcome to the second test drive meme of Futurology Season 2! This test drive will function as an optional mini-mission for both new and current characters, similar in feel to the missions we have in-game but on a much smaller scale. Threads on this test drive are game canon by default unless one of the participants would like to retcon it. Current characters may use TDM threads for non-!plot AC proofs. Both test drivers and current characters are welcome to top level! While current characters are allowed to tag other current characters, we ask that you please make an effort to be welcoming to test drivers as well! Since incoming characters currently don't have official specializations, we have no specialized prompts. However, feel free to play as if your character is level 1 of whichever specialization you would like to choose. Questions about the game in general can be directed to the FAQ. If you've been with us before, you might notice things look a little different around here. Make sure you check out the welcome page for the basic rundown of how your character joined up with Hathaway. For further information about the game, the full navigation has all the links you'll need. ▸ Upcoming Events (Futurology runs on timezone UTC): |
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[ Oh, this is... the other Simon. The first one she'd met, before Simon had been copied into the power suit. She'd never known if he'd deleted him or not. Apparently not. It seems like he's forgotten some of what they'd done at Omicron, including Herber's body and transferring his consciousness, maybe in self-protection? Simon's been in denial about a lot more than that, so it's plausible. Catherine swallows, hard, because she knows this mean she'll never get the resolution she craves. But it also means he never lost faith with her in the first place.
Maybe it's for the best. In any case, she can't do anything about it, and she can't have an argument with someone who wasn't there. Catherine takes a steadying breath, the feeling still new enough that it distracts her fully, recenters herself, and she climbs to her feet with some help from a tree she was leaning against, brushing dirt off once she's up. ]
Never mind, I get it. How long have you been here? [ She's calm again, steady. Catherine isn't about to take her frustration out on him, or prod him in what she knows are sore spots, that he's a duplicate. ]
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Three months. Maybe four. [ That they just got to this question now is a reminder that this is totally not the conversation he thought they were going to have, but whatever. He’s never seen — well, heard — Catherine get actually upset before. Withholding information from him, sure, and usually he hadn’t pursued it because part of him didn’t want to know.
Even now, he has to push past her super enticing opening for a normal conversation where they forget any of that weird shit just happened. ]
Are you... okay? You said I yelled at you and called you a liar.
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She wonders why Simon didn't merit one but she did, but knows better than to bring it up.
Three, four months is a long time from her perspective, she of less than a week old, technically speaking. It's hard to believe how few cumulative hours it'd been that they'd spent together, she and Simon, after the world ended. It would be even fewer, from his perspective.
It shouldn't be that those last remaining ten hours or so made such a difference, but it turns out, in the scheme of their relationship, they did. Catherine lets out a breath and impatiently pushes her hair back, irritated that it's so long again. ] I'm fine. Just forget about it-- it wasn't you. [ Confusing different copies of people for each other has never been Catherine's problem, at least. She squints at him suddenly. ] Have you cleaned your suit at all? There's other people around now, you know.
[ That's a genuine comment, but also, hopefully a great distraction. ]
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[ It is a great distraction. Even if “great” probably isn’t the word for the pattern of behavior that includes classic hits such as “talk to Catherine about a bunch of things to keep himself occupied away from the questions he should be asking, the answers to which could be really terrible” and was instrumental in making those last ten hours such a dumpster fire. “It wasn’t you” throws up so many subconscious HOLY BETTER FOLLOW UP ON THAT flags and Simon just pole-vaults right over them into the sweet embrace of this, admittedly actually genuinely distracting, new topic, because that’s how Simons do.
Flummoxed, looks down at himself, spreading his arms as if expecting to see something different. ]
Yes, just not— [ no that answer is bad ] This is your rogue A.I.’s fault, not mine, remember? How do you expect me to make this presentable?
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Thankfully, it works.
Catherine gives him a wry look, a whole body's worth of personality suddenly being communicated past her voice, which sounds as lightly sarcastic as ever. ] I don't know, but if it's been nearly four months, I'm sure we can do better than I just walked out of the ocean. Come on.
[ Without an ounce of hesitation, she walks right up to him, grabs him by the arm, and starts tugging him toward a nearby creek. Her brand of bossiness translates into the physical spectrum surprisingly mildly-- although she's assertive in directing him, her grip is easily broken out of, and she has the long-suffering exasperation of an older sister rather than an authoritarian. ]
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Not like he wouldn’t have followed her anyway. Because he would have. Based on time investment alone, the ‘guess we’re going here now because Catherine’ routine shouldn’t have taken the hold that it did, but it did. Being in a different place, time, and body and waking up to one single other living person probably contributed a nice zesty duckling-style imprinting factor, although Simon would be mortified to hear such a thing suggested.
Anyway, he’s following her and oh god ]
You’re not serious. [ But he knows better and throws out this hypothesis immediately, and instead complains, ] Come on, this is just a different kind of dirty water.
[ He flounders a little where he might otherwise be more firm. For as much as Simon complains about the things Catherine asks him to do, he never feels coerced by her, nor alone in doing them or making the decision. Now, it’s shock at how... alive, and right here, she is, the voice once floating in space now suddenly in three dimensions.
BUT DON’T EMBARRASS HIM IN FRONT OF HIS COOL NEW COWORKERS ]
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She doesn't think anything of the physical contact because of Simon's weird, morbid body situation, but rather just because physical contact is not Catherine's natural inclination. It seems totally normal, somehow, with Simon, despite herself. It's not something she's going to question. ]
I'm sure I can figure something out. [ She has these implausible problem-solving invention abilities now, after all, and Simon needs a lot more help than the cute psychic foxes. She lets him go as they approach the creek, and points at a rock. ]
Sit. No one's done maintenance on you at all, have they? [ She sounds disparaging and exasperated. Catherine knows Simon is in denial about his state of existence (how could she have missed it), but that's no excuse for not taking care of himself. She's done enough perfunctory dive suit and otherwise robotics maintenance as part of the crew of PATHOS-II that she has a whole list of things lined up in her head. The first Catherine went out on the sea floor enough to have a healthy respect for making sure her dive suit wasn't going to abruptly fail on her, and as an engineer, she's more than capable of maintaining it and any of his robotics parts. ]
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Also, Catherine’s talking about Simon right now like he’s a car somebody’s been neglecting, which would be pretty uncomfortable if anybody else did it. ]
I haven’t asked them to. Why would I? They wouldn’t know what to do with me, and I don’t need everybody knowing... what I’m made out of.
[ yes, this has been his only long-term plan. To Not Require Repairs Ever, if at all possible. ]
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In another familiar Catherine-voice, one of bright self-confident teasing despite the implications of a moment ago: ] Good thing you have me now! [ She's finding it as easy to slip back into their old dynamic as Simon is, and truthfully, she's immensely relieved. They won't need to revisit that argument at all, and it won't come up, because the ARK is finished and done and over with and Simon presumably won't be copying himself here, ever again.
So she can just ignore that whole issue completely. Great. But this other thing, she's not ignoring. ]
Have you seriously not been telling anyone anything? [ Catherine starts with this conversational opener as she sits, too, on the bank of the gently flowing water beside him, uncaring about adding wetness to the dirt on her already. She has a messenger bag with her that carries her acquired tools and some basic supplies, and brings it forward onto her lap and starts to rummage around, eyes flicking noticeably between him and her bag, planning out her attack as she takes in details of his condition. ]
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[ When it comes to the thorny details, ‘robot’ is good enough for everybody he’s met. It doesn’t make the reactions he gets any better, but “Actually, zombie cyborg” would definitely make them worse.
Simon eyes her as she sifts through God knows what and leans away from her just a little, definitely not at all like a child about to get a booster shot. ] What are you doing? And why right here? There’s a garage on the ship for this stuff.
[ There are black scorch marks on his hands and small cuts on the non-metal bits of one shoulder, but those aren’t exactly mechanical issues. Mostly he’s still the same spooky craft project from a toilet, just... a little scuffed up... and gross.
And a guy tried to pull his head off a few days ago, but his grip wasn’t very strong and it still feels pretty solidly on there, so it’s probably fine??? Being so crudely put together, though, there could be all kinds of janky stuff Simon hasn’t noticed. ]
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We can be more thorough later-- but there's going to be combat happening, and I want to make sure you don't have any major malfunctioning areas before it gets dangerous.
[ Catherine pulls out a rag and some liquid mechanic's soap for removing oil and grease stains, and starts with his hands and arms in an extremely brisk, impersonal cleaning, using rapid strokes. She alternates between the thick soap and wetting the cloth in the creek to wash it off. When his forearms and hands are done, she holds the rag out to him expectantly, letting him do the rest.
She's not here to be a personal servant, okay. Also, if she kept going, it would get weird. ]
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And Catherine showed up here, the first living, terrestrial surface place she’s seen in years, having learned there is a near-infinite multiverse, with some sort of baggage about Simon and immediately focused on him anyway, which... is... he doesn’t even know what to call how he feels about that. It’s a lot.
He picks up where she left off, but only for a moment before he decides he should probably be as close to the water as she is, so he gets up and sits down next to her on the bank, which is great because they can converse to make it less weird while also not looking at each other. ]
So, how’s the... body thing going? You’re free from the box.
[ Simon didn’t think Catherine was that bothered by being in the Omnitool, but earlier she’d made a surprisingly sharp-sounding comment about it not being a great place for her, and looking back, she had said it was disorienting in ways that sounded pretty shitty to him.
That, and of course the very premise — being unable to move and depending on someone else to tote your brain around, never knowing if they might get killed and leave you there — strikes him as horrifying. Maybe he shouldn’t have been surprised; of course she didn’t complain more when they were there, she’s Catherine.
Also, okay, maybe she was right. He’s losing some visible grime off the chest electronics, whatever they are, and dunks the rag in the water. This just in: Simon’s gross. ]
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The rules haven't changed just because they're here. A lot is different, but the basic premise of keeping Simon together is a relief in its familiarity. And the truth is... she doesn't want him to not talk to her.
She sits back as he joins her, tacitly on board with the talking without looking at each other plan.
'The box', as he'd put it, wasn't that bad, and she hadn't totally minded it at the time, given her philosophy of focusing on their goals to the exclusion of all personal discomfort, but. It's taken on a new light after their argument, and she's happy to be out of it, even if she'd have picked a different form than this one, if asked. ]
Mostly bizarre, [ she says frankly, but with a quieter tone than she's brought it up with to anyone else who's asked by now. She knows Simon will understand more than any of them. ] I didn't think I'd ever leave it again. And this body-- well-- looks like me. It's kind of freaking me out to feel like I'm back where I started. [ Catherine lets out a breath. Maybe that doesn't make any sense. She ostensibly preoccupies herself with digging through her bag of tools and pulling things out while Simon de-grimes himself-- thank God. ]
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There’s something else that has him looking at her askance, something growing into a lightheaded anxiety. She must be from the future, the way Lucina is from the same world as Lissa, but Lissa is from its pre-war past. Okay. That part sorta makes sense. But the way she’s talking about it doesn’t add up. “I didn’t think I’d ever leave it again”? ] But—
[ He tries and fails to tie this in to what she’s saying, then settles on, ] You said we launched the ARK.
[ As soon as he says it Simon is still, waiting on an answer for a question he couldn’t bring himself to ask, or even pinpoint, and there’s an undertone of helpless appeal in his voice that’s asking Catherine to be the one to work it out, eyes shifting over her face because so much for not looking at each other. She says they launched the ARK, but she isn’t acting like they did; she definitely wasn’t when she got here, and... it’s weird.
The ARK was the only thing they had, and even here, even without that desperation, he dances around confronting the idea that something could go wrong with it. But it happened without him, the him that’s here, and... got weird, apparently. He already kind of regrets bringing it back up. ]
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That's something she hasn't had a chance to properly celebrate yet. She'd had a moment of exhausted, sad self-satisfaction, of victory, before Simon yelled at her, and here... Well, she's spoken to people, of course, but it wouldn't make sense to explain the ARK to them. It would take so long to communicate the magnitude and scope of what they'd done, and at the end of it, there really is no one else who can understand but Simon, anyway.
Maybe if she directs things-- she can have that moment now. Catherine ends up reluctantly smiling, a soft, private look as she comes up to her knees and starts to poke carefully at his chest panels, evading eye contact again no matter what Simon wants. She doesn't know what he's been doing with this suit, but making sure it stays operational as a dive suit is probably wise. ]
We did, [ she says quietly. ] It still seems... surreal. But we did it, Simon. They're out there, somewhere. Even if you don't remember doing it, remember that. It's something we should be proud of.
[ She certainly is. ]
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He’d gotten so used to seeing her as a static image — cascading scan lines and all — that the surreality of it all keeps him from looking away for too long. It’s just So Weird. Not in a bad way, but weird. She’s real, and the sun is on her face and hair, and she’s corporeal... and the content look on her face, eye contact or no, is what bolsters him enough to ask. ]
Then why aren’t you—
[ Somehow he chokes on the question, and redirects it, as if he can engineer it somehow so that the answer is guaranteed to be what he wants to hear if he avoids the wrong words. ] How did you get here? What do I do with it now? I was going to have Hathaway launch it. You know, as the thing they offered us.
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But all that means nothing in the face of Simon wanting to have this conversation again, and after a long moment of her whole face gone tight and blank, she draws up straight, looking at him dead on. ]
Well, your wish was granted. Simon, you don't want to hear the answer to this question right now, so don't ask me. You already know what I'm not saying. [ She is not going through this again. No thanks. Hard pass. Especially not out in public like this. Catherine is frustrated that he's ruining all of her plans to be productive, enjoy herself. Instead, firmly: ] What do you do with what?
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[ So the upload didn’t work. That must be it, if everyone else is okay. The sinking, bitter feeling is there, but it’s remote, blunted by being here, having alternatives instead of the manic desperation of having one single uncertain thing to look forward to.
He picks at the spiraling metal growths on his palms, hunched over with his elbows on his knees. She’s probably right — when he hears things he doesn’t like, he doesn’t tend to react super great, but there’s a long pause before he can rally back somewhat from his surprise at her frustration. ] I was going to have them do it so I wouldn’t have to go back to PATHOS-II. There must be something else I can ask them to do. Maybe they can help the people the WAU’s got down there.
[ You’d think there would be a lot of things Hathaway could do for their Earth, but the no time travel and no resurrecting the dead rules are actually huge roadblocks. ]
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Good, okay, she can handle these factual questions. It takes a little longer for her fingers to unclench enough to go back to examining the dive suit's live support systems, which she does with professional, sure fingers. She's done this particular maintenance many times before, and it shows. Like an astronaut, don't go wandering out into the ocean without equipment you've personally checked over first. ]
That's not a bad idea, [ she answers, even sounding just faintly sympathetic. ] I asked that the ARK be kept safe in space, so you don't need to worry about that. [ It's a concern that had gotten her killed, once upon a time, so Catherine found it weighing heavily on her mind when she'd been asked what she wanted. ]
Well, you don't look too bad, [ she declares finally. It's pretty obvious to someone who's partially lived in one of these things for the past five years that he's taken it out for its intended purpose recently. ] But if you're going to keep going out in the water in this, I want to tweak a few things. The structure gel should be fine submerged, obviously, but I don't know about the rest of you. [ Introducing water to a corpse seems like a great way to get it to decompose real fast, and Simon's body composition has always seemed a miraculous, precarious balance to Catherine. Best not to mess with it. ]
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I only did it once, on the last mission, and it’s still kind of freaky. I’m not planning on making it a habit. [ His voice is a little less animated now, posture stiff. He has ruined the atmosphere to no benefit at all and has Regrets. He is, at least, glad it’s only been a few days for her, because it would suck if she’d waited as long as he has to reunite. She’d be even more pissed and disappointed. He only half-hears what she’s saying about his physical condition, but at fine so whatever. ]
I think we just contaminated the Vulphytes’ water supply, but... thanks. [ the thanks is sincere, and he looks at her to say it; the rest is a halfhearted attempt at a joke... which might be true... oops. ]
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As far as she's concerned, difficult topic over, moving on. Catherine drags herself away from the strain of thinking about what had happened, and how little Simon understands still. ]
They'll be fine, [ she says dismissively. ] Animals can smell contaminated water. All right. [ Catherine sits back and starts putting things away, regaining personal space with some subdued relief. ] You should be okay, but I want to do a more thorough look when we're back. If we can get your helmet off so I can look at the internal electronics, that would be best.
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But they can bargain about that on the ship, because Catherine hasn’t even heard anything about what he’s actually been up to here. Let the record show that Simon Jarrett is/was a functioning grown adult, but there’s also a small childish part of him that feels like like Hathaway is, in relation to Catherine, his cool thing he found that he gets to introduce her to and be the expert on. ]
Did they fill you in on Hanabira? Our last mission. It was like feudal Japan, but a matriarchy. Two empresses were claiming to both rule the same continent, and we had to fix it before war broke out. [ Simon bounces back at the opportunity to talk about the things he’d thought they’d talk about if he ever got the chance. And just as Catherine’s reclaimed physical distance from him he leans toward her slightly, gesturing animatedly. ] It was split into two factions, the Mountain Clan and the Sea Clan, and they didn’t know about merging universes or interdimensional travel, so from each side’s perspective, the other empress just appeared out of nowhere. We had to keep shutting down rebel samurai who wanted war before they could do too much damage.
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Catherine gives him a skeptical look as she takes this in. ] You helped with that? Putting down samurai?
[ Simon, fighting ?? It's not that she isn't interested in this exciting new Hathaway thing, it's just, well, Catherine is unflappable regarding strange new things on a bad day. ]
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[ It’s not like it’s an uneducated shot in the dark, either. Even if the monsters in PATHOS-II were a special case, even if their entire partnership took place in one big special case, Catherine already knows Simon was once some noodly guy who worked in a bookstore and has witnessed many of the most unflattering moments of his life. Even if he were at all inclined to try, he’s not going to be able to convince her that when he’s not screaming WHAT DO I DO? WHAT IS THAT? WHY ARE WE HITTING ROBOTS? in her presence, he is in fact a stone-cold war machine. ] That’s really all you got out of that?
[ And sure, it was mostly just during a hostage situation where all the guards were really inexperienced and didn’t all even have real weapons. but oh my god just let him be cool catherine ]
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Well, no, but it's over with and we're not going back there, right? I don't need to know very much. [ Ruthlessly practical, that's her. Finally fed up with her hair getting in the way, she reaches up to start braiding it over her shoulder, a bit clumsily, given how many years it's been since she's had hair this long. The synthetic strands are slippery, too, so it's not going to stay without a tie, she realizes, but she tries anyway as she talks. ]
It's still hard for me to imagine you've been here so long. [ Not because disparities in timeline from perceived awareness confuse her, obviously, but... ] I guess... I got used to the idea that it was just the two of us out there.
[ This is a surprisingly sentimental admission for Catherine, although she makes it with a matter-of-fact reserve. A lot has happened that this Simon wasn't there for, and it's changed her, subtly. ]
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