driftfleet | +2 nerdchildren

Entry tags:

+2 nerdchildren

Who: Sorey & Mikleo / OPEN
Broadcast: Fleet-wide
Action: Marsiva
When: Now!!

[ACTION]

[It's probably not normal for a lack of something to be the first thing one notices upon waking up, but Mikleo opens his eyes to the realization that there's a serious lack of... weight on his chest, one he'd become resigned to feeling ever since leaving Elysia. Malevolence was everywhere in the world, and only his contract with Sorey and Lailah had kept him from growing sick because of it, or worse.

Here, though, he feels not even an ounce of it. Which immediately brings to mind the question- where...?

Once he's up and on his feet and staring out the nearest window - witnessing the state of the sky, what in the world - it takes him a while to shake off the shock. He feels like his head's been invaded- thoughts, understanding forced into it, making his head hurt. This is space. He doesn't know why he knows this, but he does. Space, a fleet of ships traveling the universe like a fleet of whales in the ocean, prisoners for entertainment...

What does it even mean?

Sorey. I need to find him. Forcing himself away from the glass, he wanders the hallways, drawn to his Shepherd like a lost sheep. He has to be here. This feeling is unmistakable.]

[BROADCAST: VIDEO]

-ink this is how it works? Where’s the part I talk into? Try the top corner, it's flashing. Do you know why? -well because it’s communicating, isn’t it? Don't look at me. Oh! No no, it’s working now. ...yup. Okay! Geez…

Wow, this is so cool! Can everybody really hear me? -oh man, we can make recordings with this! You know, instead of having to lug around parchment all the time? We absolutely have to bring this back home.

Like people need more reasons to fear the Shepherd.

-ah, right! Introductions! I’m Sorey. I’m supposed to be an Engineer? I’m not totally clear on everything involved in that, so please be patient with me! Um, and since it sounds like we’re all in the same boat- I mean, this might’ve been asked before but does anybody know who we can talk to if we really, really need to get back? It’s kind of an emergency. This seems like a kidnapping but we’re not in a cell or anything, so it’s not as bad as it could’ve been, I suppose.

But definitely! Any clarification on how to get back would be really, really helpful.

You should probably stop talking like you're with someone, Sorey. People will think you're more weird than you already are.

Sorry, you’re right. It’s just really hard to pretend you’re not here when you look right at me like that...

[ACTION PART 2]

[Sorey and Mikleo can be found exploring the Marsiva. To those who can see Mikleo (have a look at his permission post please!), they'll both be there, talking animatedly. To those who can't, feel free to call Sorey out on, you know, talking animatedly to himself.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Wow, this is so cool. I wonder what made this happen? I've never met so many people all at once with enough resonance to hear him, even if you guys can't see him.

Hey, excuse me! Do you see any fuzzy shapes in this general direction? [waves a hand right in front of mikleo's dumb invisible face as annoyingly as possible]

[YOU ARE THE MOST IRRITATING BEST FRIEND EVER]

Sorey. Can we stay focused, here?

[He's getting really weirded out by all these people hearing him and doesn't know how to deal, nope.]

[Ahh, he wants Sorey to do the talking to he can figure out how he feels about this.]

Right, right. Let's just say for now that he's invisible. His name is Mikleo though, and he's absolutely real.

[Judging by the squint, but no real reaction other than that... Y e a h, it's safe to say that Clay can't see anything there. But hey, he can still hear a voice!

And, well, you know what? Clay's been here for months, and he's seen and heard all kinds of crazy things that aren't supposed to exist. So. Invisible people? Sure, why not?

He grins, then waves to the camera.]

Sorey and Mikleo, then! Mine's Clay. Nice to meet you two!

So did you guys get a rundown of the place yet?

[Mikleo turns away, half-listening and mumbling quietly to himself, leaving the explaining to Sorey for a moment. He pulls out his own communicator, examining it and toying with the controls.]

Never seen tech like this... is it simulating resonance...?

[There is now a comm floating around behind Sorey's head.]

[Just gonna automatically step in front of that. MIKLEO AT LEAST INFUSE IT, and you accuse HIM of being weird.] Good to meetcha, Clay! A rundown would be really, really great! We're still very confused. Hopelessly so.

[... Whoooooa, that comm is definitely floating. So there is an invisible pers - oh, invisible person blocked. That awed expression breaks with a blink, then a slight shake of his head as he focuses. Right, giving the deets of this place.]

Oh, uh... Well, this is the fleet! The ship you two are on right now is called the Marsiva, but you should be brought to smaller ships byyyy the end of the week sometime? The ones in charge are Diamond and Bleu, but we don't... really get to talk to them much. And they barely respond when we try to get answers. But we're still working on a way to get everyone home! Rest assured, you're not alone!

Ask him about that thing on your neck.

[Blithely, from behind. It's going to take a while to get used to not having to talk through Sorey.]

I see... [It'll take a while for Sorey to adjust too, since he responds automatically with just a quick glance over his shoulder.]

I've got this weird bump on my neck, right behind my ear like something's there. Is that normal?

Yeah, that's. A thing that happens when you get here. I've got it too - [He feels at a spot just a bit behind his left ear -] right here. That's your augment! When you woke up, did you just... know about some things that you didn't before? That's the augment working.

But oh, don't try to take it out. It, uh... Right now, it's kind of connected to you, so it... wouldn't be very pretty if you did that.

[Not that he's seen anyone do it, but he's preeeetty sure that'd be the end result.]

Then, everyone...?

[Mikleo pauses in his communicator examination to feel around in behind his own ear. If what this man is saying is true, then--]

He's right. I've got one as well.

[His perpetually firm grasp on calm is starting to fail. He's never been- altered like this. You can't just force human technology onto a seraph. They'd have to have enough resonance to even see him, but the tech itself can simulate it, and if no one else saw the augment then it's somehow already infused with his body, and- ugh, he feels kind of sick.]

Wh-what? [Sorey turns and seems to be grabbing hold of the air when he looks behind Mikleo's ear.] It is there...how did that happen? It must've been while we were out. [Now that is unnerving. Sorey can handle people doing things to him, but putting stuff into Mikleo? While he's passed out? Which he shouldn't be anyway?

That's far, far less okay.]

Clay, do these things...do anything? Besides make us know things we haven't learned.

[Man, it's so weird, seeing Sorey interact with air like that, even knowing that there's actually someone there. Even with the voice of Mikleo coming through the comm, he keeps having to remind himself that oh, right, there's someone standing right beside him and not off-camera.]

That's pretty much all they do. They're... what you do on the ships, sort of? Like, I'm the pilot of mine, so I knew all about the flight controls and what everything did before I even touched them.

[He can understand, sort of, how weirded out they are; he too was like that when he first noticed that bump under his skin. After several months of living with it, though, it's something he's getting used to.]

But sometimes they act weird. It's rare, it hasn't happened to me yet, but I know they can glitch out and make you sick, or act weird. It's not serious, it won't make you die or go evil or anything. From what I heard, it's like... a fever, or something.

A fever?

[Mikleo exchanges a concerned glance with Sorey. Can seraphim even get fevers? He's never had one before. What if all of this has some kind of adverse effect on him because it's meant for a different species? Is he getting sick already!? He does not feel great about this right now...!]

[Now rubbing Mikleo's back sympathetically.] It's okay, a fever isn't all that bad. [i mean it would probably suck for someone who's never had one but]

Thanks for letting us know. We were definitely wondering about those things when we found each other, and it's pretty worrying that they can act up... Do you think it's safe to try and remove them?

[And almost immediately:] No. Nooo no no, that wouldn't be fine at all.

The augments are connected to your head, so if you try to remove them, it'd be... well, bad. It'd be way better to just leave them alone until we figure out a safe way to get them out of us.

[Alarming.]

What if it's more dangerous to keep them? We need to at least try...

[YOU'RE NOT SELLING IT WELL, BUDDY]

Well, I mean, if you want to cut out a piece of your brain, then...

[HOW'S THAT THEN]

[GOODNESS] Nnope! No, that's okay, we're not interested.

C'mon Mikleo, if Clay says it's better to leave them alone then we'd better leave them alone. [clay, this guy we just met, is 100% trustworthy and i endorse him completely]

[Uuugh, but it's a human thing and it's in him...

But he has no good solutions to this problem, and poking at it is causing him to grow even more uncomfortable, so he finally relents, clenching his fists at his sides to keep from prodding at it.]

Fine, I'll leave it alone for now.

[But he doesn't have to like it!]

[Yes look he is completely trustworthy and please leave it alone forever or at least until it's safe to mess with it]

Good! Good.

[He really wants to ask what Mikleo's augment is, buuut it's probably best not to keep calling attention to it, so he'll move right along.]

So, uh, where'd you two come from?

We've been all around the continent of Glenwood, but I'm not sure what you'd call our world. We haven't really named it.

Maybe because we had no idea there were other worlds out there like ours?

An older seraphim might know of another name, but I've never thought to ask.

[Until recently, all they've ever known is Elysia, anyway. Theirs is a very small world.]

Oh yeah, there are plenty of worlds out there! Just ask anyone you talk to, and 95% of the time they'll tell you their home is something completely different from anyone else! Mine's the most common one here, but even then there's still - uh -

It's - uh, it's kind of complicated, actually, but it's still really cool! There's so much more than I ever thought there could be!

[And immediately after this] Clay! Clay is it true that you've kept records of the civilizations and ruins you guys have found on other planets?! Can I see them? Is that okay?!

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