Voices from Heaven (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
thespaceopera) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
driftfleet2015-10-20 10:06 am
thespaceopera) wrote in driftfleet2015-10-20 10:06 am
Entry tags:
Sweet dreams are made of these...
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Elecman.EXE
Icons hover in midair, bright panels that can be accessed by touch and will react by glowing when a visitor comes near. One has a music note on it. Another has some kind of gear. The third and last one is greyed out, and will produce a buzzing sound and an ACCESS NOT GRANTED - for now. The icon on it looks a little like a very simplified icon of a person.
There's a screen of some kind set into a gridded wall, just beyond these icons. The screen appears tinted, somehow; a blurry shadow of a person moves around in what seems to be a cluttered bedroom. Knocking or calling out won't get this person's attention; anyone visiting can only watch.
Oh, and Elecman is here too, standing there, watching the screen. His back is turned to any arrivals, and he won't react unless specifically prodded.
((Warnings for some violence and character death! Give me a heads up if you'd rather avoid these things.)) ]
no subject
So maybe he might have spent a minute or so just standing there and drinking it all in--but that's alright, because he's the only person in here anyway, right? Eventually it occurs to him to actually properly look around, though, and the lighting-bolt wallpaper sets off the first hint--before Megaman realizes Elecman's here too, straight ahead, and he jumps a bit. Oh.
There's a bit of a misgiving already, realizing this, but looking around doesn't yield any immediate sign of an exit, and Elecman...doesn't seem to realize he's here yet? Megaman hovers hesitantly in place for a moment, staring from Elecman to the icons instead, and the screen in the wall behind them too--also a very familiar sight. But not being able to make out the other side of it is...odd. What's going on here? Is something wrong with the PET? (Is this a PET....?)
Megaman draws forward cautiously, approaching Elecman and the icons...ah, the space is too small to avoid this, really. Might as well get this out of the way--]
Um--hey. Elecman?
no subject
...Oh, hey. It's you. [ His tone is neutral. ] What is it?
no subject
But the response doesn't seem negative per se, so that's a bit of a relief...Megaman comes to a halt, tilting his head slightly.]
Well, I was just... [He hesitates a bit awkwardly.] Where is this? I'm not quite sure how I got here.
no subject
Look around if you want. It doesn't bother me.
no subject
Oh. Okay, then. If--it's alright with you... [Despite the fact that Elecman literally just said it was alright BUT LOOK THAT'S STILL JUST STRANGE OKAY...gotta play it safe...and be polite besides!
But there's nowhere else to really go, by the looks of things. So, unwilling to pester Elecman too much further, Megaman turns his attention to the icons instead. It takes him a few more seconds, whinging between staring at them and looking over furtively at Elecman (and fully expecting some kind of reprimand any time now), but eventually...Megaman finally reaches up to touch the gear, curious despite himself.]
no subject
There's the occasional flash of colour, a little bit of yellow here and there, but features more detailed than a silhouette are hard to discern.
The gear recalibrates the entire room; platforms rise and fall, everything reassembling itself. Even the screen changes; the shadow on the other side is a little taller now, in a workshop cluttered with mechanical pieces.
Everything rearranges itself with precision. Storage cubes ease out from the walls to form a sort of library-esque space, data rearranging itself to fit neatly inside.
However, there are a few anomalies. There are three colours to this space; yellow, red and black. All data is colour-coded this way, and sits in the correct storage space for it. To correspond with this code, three objects sit in separate nooks in the front of this space, closest to Elecman.
On the left, there's a pair of yellow headphones. It has a lightning bolt stenciled on one of the 'ears'. It looks like it's been dropped a lot and subsequently patched up again. They're not plugged into anything.
In the middle, there's a red dvd player. It has a projector attached to it.
On the right, there's a black VR headset. It's slightly cracked on one side. ]
no subject
When everything seems to have settled down, he decides to approach the assorted data first. The meticulous organization is a nice touch, he has to admit...looking between them and the objects that seem to relate to them, Megaman opts to take a closer look at the red data first. (It'd be a bit trickier to use the headphones or the VR headset, after all, considering his own earpieces and helmet and such....)]
no subject
The red data is stacked and sorted neatly, like everything else. It's arranged in categories by what seems to be navi symbol. Some are perhaps uncomfortably familiar, while others...Gutsman's symbol, and Tomahawkman's symbols, are here too. There's even a few with Elecman's own symbol on it. A few, in disarray that stands out from the rest of the organised data, have Magnetman's emblem on it; they seem to radiate with a discomforting aura.
And tucked away in a corner are two data blocks with Megaman's symbol on it.
All of them will respond by re-folding themselves into a disc when picked up. ]
no subject
The other symbols are more surprising for sure, though. The undeniably negative vibe coming off Magnetman's symbols is strange to say the least, and enough of an incentive to steer clear for now--ah, were they enemies or something? He supposes he wouldn't know...but wait, Gutsman and Tomahawkman's symbols, what are those doing here? And--oh.
Those sure are his symbols over there in that corner.
Megaman freezes, blinking--looks back up and over at Elecman, and then resumes staring at that corner for a bit. --Ah. ...Right, he'd said this place was--an interface, for memory data. Is that what this is? In a way Megaman supposes their last fight would have been memorable enough for a memory of its own. But well, that's still assuming--that the parallel universe thing isn't...
Hm.
He hesitates for what feels like a long while, but when he finally does reach into the assortment of red data--he picks up Gutsman's symbol first, frowning as it folds neatly into a disc. He's pretty sure Gutsman had never met Elecman before (well, in--in his world), or he would have heard about it for sure...so what's his friend doing in here? Yeah. That's important to know, whether your friend is alright. (He still can't shake the sight of his own symbol out of his head even when he turns around, though...)
Data disc now in hand, Megaman hesitates again, and then approaches the red dvd player. Seems like they match, after all--so, this probably goes inside that, somehow...?]
no subject
When Megaman does, it slides smoothly back in; the projector blinks and flashes before an image pops up.
Gutsman is hunched over, apparently in concentration. His back is turned to the 'camera', so it's not possible to view what he's holding at the moment. Elecman is seated next to him.
"--sure you don't want to let me help?"
"Gutsman can do it, de gutsu!" The bigger navi holds whatever he's holding away, in a sort of defensiveness. There's a few plunks that sound suspiciously like some kind of instrument...?
"You'll never learn to use it properly like that." Elecman waits for a moment, and then shakes his head, his eyes narrowed in impatience. "I'm not going to take it from you, Gutsman. Come on, hand it over."
After a few moments of indecision, in which Elecman looks increasingly more annoyed, the younger navi reluctantly hands over his prize. It's some kind of music program, made to teach a navi how to control an electronic learning system installed in a guitar. It's the kind of thing that would usually come with a manual.
"Just watch me." He plays a few notes, very slowly, placing his fingers deliberately in certain positions to make the right sounds, and then hands the program back. "Now you try."
Gutsman's imitation is a lot slower even than that. The younger navi is obviously concentrating hard to do it correctly, but he does.
"Okay. Good. Give it here." They continue back and forth in this way for a little while (what's starting to come out sounds suspiciously like 'happy birthday') and then the memory ends.
The dvd player whirrs and opens up again, revealing the red disc. Would you like to play another memory? ]
tl;dr "wow that was cute as heck BUT WHY"
That wasn't what he was expecting to see at all.
Of course Gutsman was going to be in this footage, obviously, but the sight of the guy still brings an unexpected pang as Megaman draws a step closer, staring at the feed that unfolds. Still stubborn and proud as always...good old Gutsman. (He misses him, Megaman realizes somewhere in the back of his head--misses him terribly, the same way he misses all of his friends. It's a thought he has to nudge away.) And preoccupied as he is with Gutsman, it takes him a second to realize there's somebody else sitting beside him too. Somebody with those familiar pylons...
And then....
The recording ends, and the red disc is left sitting and waiting in the dvd player for a few seconds longer than probably entirely necessary as Megaman blinks at the spot the video feed had been. --At length he does pull out the red disc, belatedly, but he makes his way back to the red data storage with slow steps, struggling to sort through thoughts still settling into place.
Because that...had been nice? To see. After the overwhelming surprise of seeing it, anyway; the last thing Megaman had ever expected to watch was Elecman of all people being friendly to one of his own friends--even helpful. And actually patient, amazingly, which tends to be a bit of a requirement with someone like Gutsman anyway...but how could that be? Unless this was some kind of trick...? But he's never heard of a Navi being able to tamper their own memory--and if this place really is a server for memories...
That hadn't seemed like the same guy he'd fought in SciLab's power server at all. And there was no way he wouldn't have heard about that meeting from Gutsman sometime anyway, which would mean--what does that mean? Megaman frowns down into the red data storage, looking over to Gutsman's symbol in his hand; with a sigh, he gently sets it back down inside with the other symbols. ...Speaking of other symbols, though...and he's looking at his own two symbols again, still tucked away in that corner over there.
...He leans over and picks up one of them, watching it fold into another disc as he slowly makes his way back to the dvd player.]
SRRY MEGAMAN
REQUIRES HEADSET TO VIEW.
When Megaman plugs in the headset and puts it on, one way or another (either by taking his helmet off or finding that the headset will automatically adjust to fit him properly) the view changes.
It's a room, somewhere. Navis Megaman will recognise as his friends are clamped to the wall with magnets. The associated data with this memory will identify this as a feeding cage for Gospel.
The memory is paused for a brief second, before-
There's a sudden spike of pain through your torso as Magnetman casually impales you through the gut and pins you, neck-first, to the floor without much effort - he doesn't even use his hands. You struggle, attempting to get up; you'd be struggling to breathe, perhaps, if you weren't a navi who had no idea what breathing was.
Man, you hate that guy.
Alerts frame your vision, beeping urgently to warn you about that whole impalement thing that you already know is there. The wound burns, preoccupying a sector of your processing.
You continue to struggle, full of anger; Magnetman eventually releases his grip to fight his other opponent.
There's a flash of movement.
(It must be weird, watching yourself.)
Megaman moves strangely; though he hits a lot harder, and more powerfully, you can tell he's having trouble controlling it. When his body begins to warp, corrupted material surging to become visible as he charges his final attack - it's advanced so far in such a short space of time - that motivates you to get up, to push yourself to your feet as Magnetman closes in to take advantage of that weakness.
You grab Magnetman with another flare of anger, locking him in place, dragging him down. He's wounded, and can't throw you off like normal.
"Megaman, don't worry about me! You can aim for me!"
Your target struggles in your arms. You don't let go; if anything, you hold on more tightly.
It doesn't take a genius to figure out what will happen next. But...
You're not afraid. Even if your operator hadn't requested it of you, you still wouldn't let go.
"Elecman-"
Megaman is in pain, still, and struggling to control the trajectory of his final shot. But it's growing in power. The least you can do is provide a steady target.
"That's it! Megaman, fire!"
Magnetman struggles. You don't let him go. There's probably nothing that could get you to let him go, at this point; the wounds run too deep for both you and your operator. He knows what he's done to you. Or he should.
If he's forgotten? That's his mistake.
There isn't much room for thought. Megaman cries out as his data fluctuates again, concentration shattered, and releases the blast.
That's it.
Blue light floods over both of you. The alerts increase, damage output spikes--
The memory ends there.
There's nothing more to record. ]
1/2 ah.......
He has a vague notion of what a VR headset is actually supposed to do, and he's expecting something more or less in that direction when he puts it on--but that still isn't enough to really prepare him for the kind of input that comes flooding in anyway: instantaneous and vivid, as if he's experiencing it all for himself.
His friends, trapped--Gospel's feeding cage? (When had Gospel ever had one of those?) The sight and innate information conflicts almost immediately, but immersed like this, confusion ends up having to be put more on the wayside. Especially since--well--getting impaled tends to be a pretty preoccupying affair! And the pain of it is breathtaking already, though the exceptional anger blazing through at the exact same time is almost just as disarming to experience in its own way. Magnetman--Megaman has no particular lingering fondness for that guy, either, after that incident with the airplane a year back, but a hatred like this...
This is Elecman, isn't it? Getting stabbed--oh...
The movement comes into view, and even as absorbed as most of his processing is in this echo of secondhand pain and fury, Megaman still has just enough room to find himself immensely unsettled about watching himself dash into view like this. The fact that this other Megaman seems to be running a bit oddly doesn't help matters--those are definitely much stronger attacks than usual, but the lack of control...what's going on here? What's--that--some sort of corrupted data? 'It's advanced so far...' That doesn't really explain anything, but...
Magnetman's going in for the weakness, and then he's--Elecman's getting back up, and grabbing, and the hatred condenses into such a steeled resolution to not let go...it's a feeling that Megaman's familiar enough with himself, even if the anger is strange. And that small active bit of his consciousness finds a pang of dread, in realizing what's probably going to happen--feeling Elecman's determination like this, here--(he'd never thought Elecman would be the sort of guy to do this...)
And the other Megaman doesn't want to fire, clearly, but in the end...]
tl;dr HE TAKES IT BACK EVERYTHING IS NOW REGRETS
And the memory ends, and the reaction is automatic, as that sensation sets in; it'll probably never not be frightening, really, and it had seemed so real--
Megaman yanks off the headset with a strangled sort of cry, and--ends up sort of flinging it across the room (sorry about that Elecman) before his legs give out on him and he sinks to his knees next to the dvd player, folding in on himself, frame shaking. It wasn't real, he tries to remind himself. It wasn't real--but man...]
no subject
Elecman crouches and offers it to the other navi. ]
Hey.
Do you need a hand? [ His voice is concerned, and when Megaman finally looks up, so is his expression. ]
(no subject)
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[Besides, Elecman is here - and while she doesn't know him well yet, what she does know she likes. It's tempting to go over to him immediately, but instead she crosses to the panel with the picture of a person on it, tapping it curiously with two fingers and flinching at the loud buzzing.]
no subject
ACCESS DENIED. The text glows. Perhaps it would be better to try one of the other icons, or just ask Elecman.
Who seems to have been bothered by the feedback, actually. He's shaking his head a little, as if trying to dispel some noise he's hearing. ]
no subject
Hey. Allow me access, would you? How'm I supposed to investigate this properly if your head's locking me out?
no subject
But the bluntness has touched his humor, at least. His expression flickers from closed off to somewhat amused. It helps that in the waking world, he likes Mal already; she reminds him of a certain strong-willed person he knows, and that makes him positively disposed. ]
Well, since you asked like that. [ He crosses over to the icons where Mal stands; the icon loses its ACCESS DENIED lock and begins to glow brightly.
He touches it. The room rearranges itself rapidly; brightly coloured data blocks shuffle around, eventually creating an enclosed space.
Screens are the main feature of this one; big, small, rounded edges or sharp corners. Some have patterned borders, some are plain.
The biggest screen here is a soft, pastel yellow. On its surface, music notation rushes past; there's the sound of a guitar. It has plain, rounded borders. Another next to it is a much sharper lemon yellow, borders pointy and slightly ornate. From it comes the sound of rain.
There are others floating around; one is red, and radiates...a kind of aggressiveness. You feel as if it's challenging you; the indistinct sound of a loud voice does nothing to help this feeling. Another is dotted various colours, bright blue and yellow; there is the sound of screeching laughter and a feeling of something between annoyance and fondness. The last is a calming blue, with purple borders; there's the sound of a distant, soft voice, and it radiates a calm feeling.
Other screens rotate past, each following their own measured orbit. Everything is in its place, no matter how haphazard it might seem; everything in its own time.
Faint music plays, somewhere. It sounds like a guitar. ]
no subject
[The trouble really is that she wants to touch everything. Everything except the blue and purple panel, at least; that doesn't do anything for her at all. Calm isn't her place. She's always been all frenetic energy, and this is no exception. The others, though . . .]
[Her ears prick up at the sound of music, and she feels homesick when she hears rain; the laughter reminds her of herself, and the rough fondness reminds her of Polly. But it's the aggression that really draws her in. Once it catches her eye, she can't look away, her pupils dilating slightly and her limbs going loose like she's ready to fight. Which she is, as always.]
[Only one thing to do, then: skim her fingers across the red panel and see what happens.]
no subject
Oh? Who's this? [ His voice is strong and fairly deep; the flame on his head burns brightly. ] You must be some friend of Elecman's, right? Heh, guess he made some other friends beside us after all.
"Hey! You bastard, don't say that!"
[ Though he seems larger than life, he's after all a construct. He's laughing at Elecman standing in the corner of the room, who's turned around and is bristling at him, but what Mal will generally get from this guy are impressions; what he thinks of Elecman, filtered through Elecman's mind. ]
no subject
Listen. You might be mostly imaginary, but I can still make your life miserable if you don't shut up.
[Nobody hazes Elecman but her. Rules.]
no subject
He just doesn't like it when people realise he cares about what they think. [ And despite Elecman's bristling, there's an impression that arguing all the time is what comes easily to both of them, in a fond kind of way. Case in point; Elecman hmphs and crosses his arms. Not especially impressed, but not denying it, either. ] It's too bad I can't fight you! I'd mess things up in here.
"Looks like you learned from last time."
Hey, hey, that was only once! [ It's this other navi's turn to look pointedly, with annoyance; Elecman smirks. ]
no subject
So he beats you usually, then, does he? My crew.