first one to make that doctor who joke loses

[birdsbirdsbirds]

Who: Everyone! All of you!
Broadcast: Maybe!
Action: Definitely!
When: Anytime during the toxic moon event!

---

[boy oh boy, isn't everyone just so excited to explore this... charming... place...?

this is a game-wide mingle and the timeframe isn't super-important, so throw in with whatever you want! play war games, go shopping for gas masks, get lost in the wilderness, hide up in the Iskaulit and refuse to set foot on the moon, anything goes.

here's the main event info post for reference! have fun!]

Comments

[axiomed]

[ He lets the slang roll off him. He's never understood it, but he's familiar with it. ]

Explaining how is trickier. It's like . . . looking for a book in a library. You just have to pick the right one.

[pain_train]

I guess that makes sense? I don't think I ever went to the library. [Ugh, she feels stupid saying that. She knows Proles had a few libraries, but it was mostly network stuff. And she doesn't read much.]

Were you born able to do that, or did you learn how to do it? [Even if it's something you could learn, she doubts she could, but it's just such an interesting thought.]

[axiomed]

I was born with it, though it did not manifest until I was nine.

[pain_train]

Oh! That's neat. So you've always been special. Even if you didn't know it. [There's no rancor anywhere in that statement. She's genuinely excited about all of this.]

What was it like, then, when you were nine?

[axiomed]

. . . Probably not as pleasant as you might think.

[ He pauses, weighing whether he wanted to share this piece of information. ]

I thought I was going mad.

[pain_train]

[She doesn't remember being nine. For all she knows, that's a normal part of it. Though that does get her to sober up a little.]

That really sucks. [That really does sound awful ] I'm sorry.

I guess if it's something really different and special, no one is going to understand what's going on, least of all you, huh.

[axiomed]

[ He rubs his knuckles absently. ]

There weren't many bodies of literature about mutants at the time. I assumed I was the only one. Or going mad. It was hard to tell the difference.

[pain_train]

At nine years old, would you even know if there was science about it? [He must have been a really smart kid. He's certainly a smart adult. She feels lucky he's putting up with her no doubt being dumb.]

That must have been really hard. [And if he doesn't seem to mind, she'll briefly rest her hand on his. She's still starved for casual touch, but she tries very hard to not weird people out. That would be very rude.]

But you weren't the only one, right?

[axiomed]

[ He smiles warmly, clasping it lightly. ]

No. I adopted someone and she became my sister and my confidante. She was also a mutant.

[pain_train]

Awww, that's really sweet! Family is really important. Especially the family you make for yourself. I'm glad.

[It really is important to her. The only family she recalls having is the army, and then her friends after she got turfed. So it's a nice thought, that he found someone.]

[axiomed]

[ He has a nostalgic smile, a little wistful. ]

She certainly made my life more bearable.

[pain_train]

People are what's worth protecting. And having someone that gets what's going on with you...

It's rare. And special.

[Like her and Maine. Their demons were next door neighbors. No one else understood her the way he did. ]

[axiomed]

[ He nods. ]

It's why I plan on starting a school. So that people who have that special power can find others who understand them. We can help each other out.

[pain_train]

You'll be a good teacher as long as you stay patient. [She's not a teacher, but she's trained a lot of green soldiers.]

And that's such an important thing to do. A very kind and generous thing to do. [To want to save other people from suffering you've faced, yourself.] You're a really good guy, Charles.

[axiomed]

Thank you, but I'm really not all that amazing. I think that should be saved when I actually pull it off.

[ He's barely gotten his school off the ground. ]

[pain_train]

The most important part is trying. Succeeding doesn't come without trying first. And you haven't really tried until you've taken the first step. 'Cause that's the hardest, scariest one.

[axiomed]

[ He nods, briefly somber. ]

It is. But I won't give up.

[pain_train]

Well yeah. Because succeeding doesn't end with trying. [She smiles at him.]

We had a saying in the army. The reward for a job well done is another job. Normally a harder job, cause you proved you can go the distance.

You can do it.

[axiomed]

[ Well, that remains to be seen but he agrees. ]

I'll do my best.

[pain_train]

So what are you calling your school? Is it like a normal compulsory ed school, or... uh. Something fancy? [How many kinds of school are there? She doesn't even know.]

[axiomed]

It is a school for mutants like myself. The Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters.

[ Which sounds pretentious but that's the idea. It's a perfect cover. ]

[pain_train]

Gifted sounds like the right word.

Xavier... that's your last name? [Maybe? Or is that a city? Who knows.]

[axiomed]

It is. Charles Xavier.

[pain_train]

That's a really cool name! I don't think I've ever met anyone name Xavier. [She dimly recalls a Charles or two... right? It sounds familiar. Probably.] And it's fun to say.

[axiomed]

It's not an uncommon name, I'm afraid. Plenty of Xaviers and Charles running around.