driftfleet | (no subject)

Who: Zhas and whoever wants in on this grumpy trainwreck.
Broadcast: None probably.
Action: All day every day.
When: Forward dated to the dust moon because SOMEONE (me) can't be patient.

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[gunning for the prestigious "first asshole to get irresponsibly drunk as soon as they land" award, there's this guy. he doesn't normally do this kind of thing, but it's been a spectacularly harrowing six months or so. he landed, took one look at this tiny town, and thought, "Nope. Not going to participate."

he has since been working hard to remove himself from the responsibility of being a functioning human being. is this a good idea? of course not. but he has reasons and he has a gnawing evil in his chest, and he'd love for one of them to just shut up for a while.

so, acquaintances will be surprised to find him out in the late evening, dressed up like a normal person and not covered in face paint. his eyes still have kind of a dim orange glow to them, but genetics can't be helped. anyone, friend or stranger, is welcome to find him either:

a. in the process of getting drunk (at the bar, hunched grumpily over his glass of bourbon)
b. getting into a fight (because the other guy... something... doesn't really matter anyway)
c. wandering the town streets (uncoordinated, content, and oblivious to a bad nosebleed)

on the bright side, the ratings he'll get from this will probably pay for his bar tab.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[YES ZHAS THAT'S HIS NAME....sometimes the truth is stranger than anything you could guess. But anyway. Mostly oblivious to Zhas' miniature epiphany, Megaman looks mostly relieved when Zhas seems to decide a walk would be alright after all, brief confusion aside.]

Oh, yes, that's fine! I wouldn't make you stay if you didn't want to. Fixing up your nose shouldn't take long, I think...here, it's over this way! [He shifts, then, starting down the street again. But...ah...and he checks himself before he's moved too far, glancing back over at Zhas.] Um, can you walk alright? We can take it slow, I guess...

I'm walking okay...

[sure, his first step forward is more of a wobble, but he evens out after that. he can still do this! he's fine. he likes the movement of the earth pulling past his feet and thinks it's very funny (in a way that doesn't reach his face) that he gets to go on a little walk with the robot boy.]

So... What do you do...

[Yeah, Megaman could admit he's seen more solid walkers in his life probably--but Zhas still doesn't seem to be doing too bad, all things considered! So that's a good thing...but he still checks his own pace so that he's hovering relatively close to Zhas' side, anyway. You know, just in case the guy trips and needs catching, or something...

The question has him tilting his head over in Zhas' direction as they set off down the street, though, visibly confused.]

What do I do? I'm sorry, I'm not sure what you mean...what I do here? Or something else...?

[it's maybe a good idea. he thinks he's a lot more sober than he is. he's dexterous and tough but he's got a small backup of alcohol that hasn't even soaked into his bloodstream yet.

he doesn't seem to mind the little guy sticking so close, though, he brings both his hands up to sign a little as he speaks.]

You were made ['created'] by someone, right. ['purpose'] What for. ['?']

[Truly, Megaman hasn't actually had a lot of firsthand experience with drunk people in his twelve years of life so far--it's a thing that just really hasn't come up yet, between an upbringing surrounded by the country's top computer scientists and an Operator that's just made it into his first year of middle school. He doesn't really even realize Zhas is actually inebriated just yet, despite all the kind of obvious tells--it's just not the first thing to come to mind, and he still figures the slightly wobbly steps are more related to the bloody nose.

Eventually finding out will probably be awkward. But! Still. He's here for you bro. He's got you.

And oh, but that does clarify things...]

Ah, yes, that's true! I was programmed by Dr. Hikari. [Not that the name really means anything here, of course, but still...he watches thoughtfully as Zhas signs alongside his words. 'Purpose', hm...] And, well! Normally I'm a program called a NetNavi--we were created to help people navigate the Net, since it's really complicated these days! So, I have those functions too...but I was a project, as well. Dr. Hikari wanted to try something different with code, and things...

[he has no idea! blissfully unaware, they call it. he's not a heavy thinker on his best days, but right now he can't be bothered to think much further than the very first thing that pops into his head...]

And it brought you here...

[doesn't make much sense to him... he scratches his head a little, before suddenly circling back to something else.] Wait... What different things. Personality...?

[because he may be drunk, but computer navigation programs don't have personalities where he's from. (maybe they do, but he wouldn't know if they did, and he has no imagination.)]

Brought me here? [Even when actually speaking instead of signing, Zhas' responses are turning out to be an exercise in puzzling out anyway. Maybe that's just part of his personality. It doesn't bother him too much, though; he's a patient enough guy, fortunately enough for the both of them.

Oh, he was probably asking for that second question, though. 'Personality', well...not....that particular bit hadn't been an intentional result, if they want to get kind of technical--

But that would be getting too complicated and too personal, and there's a better answer anyway.]

Personality, ah, not quite! A lot of NetNavis have a personality, actually, since we've gotten so far with AI. But I was made to synchronize better with my Operator, if that makes sense? So we could understand each other better, and work together more efficiently... [Megaman gestures a bit, vaguely--it's a familiar explanation, though. He's had to use this one many times. And it's true, for the most part! ...Maybe not the entire story, but...close enough......]

Ah... Kinda...

[he at least listens to the explanation, even if it's hard to follow. as previously established--he's not big into tech. mechanics, yes. programs? no sir. he punched through a computer screen, once. that's about it.

anyway. he puts his eyes back on the road in front of them, trying extra hard to walk in a straight line. maybe it'll help him keep track of what they're talking about.] Don't have a lotta stuff like that where 'm from.

[True, punching through a computer screen probably doesn't quite make it into the whole programming package......

Honestly, though, considering the state Zhas seems to be in right now and previous experience in the fleet combined, Megaman wasn't really expecting too much in the way of total comprehension anyway. He hums, sympathetic, at Zhas' admission.]

Ah, yeah...it's okay. A lot of people here don't, I've found out. Some people here even come from worlds without an Internet at all! So it's kind of tricky to explain some things anyway... [Sometimes it's still a bit hard to wrap his head around, finding so many people hailing from the past like that. More like something out of a history book than somebody's actual, real, current home...oftentimes he's still not quite sure where to start, with those sorts of people.

They're approaching a corner near the edge of the town now, though, an expanse of dry field opening up to the side, and Megaman pauses in his steps when they reach it, scanning the horizon for...ah, there.] Oh, there it is! My ship, it's over this way...we're pretty close now! [He starts in that direction, meaning to slip off the street and towards the Golden--but he does pause to make sure Zhas is still following first.]

[oh, he's secretly a little glad to move on. let's go to things that are easy for his little mind to understand. he looks up, trying to spot the ship... and it's good that Megaman checked after him, because for a second it looks like he would have just kept on walking, otherwise.

ah, but here we go. he's following. really. he's totally paying attention.]

Which ship is yours again...

[Ah, there we go Zhas! Still keeping up, that's good....Megaman supposes that's about the least he could ask for, at this point.]

Which ship? [Zhas' question sinks in as they draw pretty near the side of the ship in question, and Megaman perks up.] Oh--we're the Golden! Right over there, see... [He vaguely gestures up to the gold crown emblazoned somewhere on the hull, just barely visible in the fading sunlight.] Not that we actually have anything fancy like crowns, haha...but that's what it's called! Though, there's still a lot of things that need fixing up right now, ever since that last attack...

[Drifting up to the cargo hold entrance, Megaman taps at the control panel on the side ~~or however this works waves hands vaguely~~, stepping into the brighter lights as the door folds itself open--but he's glancing over to Zhas as he speaks, now.] How about your ship, is it doing alright?