driftfleet | 02

Entry tags:

02 - video

Who: Winn
Broadcast: Fleetwide video
Action: the Tourist
When: now!

[ last time he posted anything, he was a nervous wreck and kind of nauseous. the changes the past two months have left in him are impossible to miss; winn is smiling, upbeat, and almost comfortable. the nervous energy that is there has more to do with his addressing a bunch of strangers than the constant fear of death by space-stuff that overshadowed his first feed. ]

Hi, if we don't know each other - I'm Winn Schott. If we do know each other...I'm still Winn Schott - [ shaking his head, why hasn't he learned from the last time? prepare a script! ]

Anyway! I've been here for a couple months now, and it's been interesting - and I mean that in the original sense of the word. Think about it - not only are we in outer space [ there's only a slight wince at that, and even a lot of excitement. space is terrifying - but it's also really cool ] - but we have a once in a lifetime opportunity to reach across the multiverse and learn things that haven't even been dreamed up in our worlds yet. I've been learning - a ton from just casually talking to people, but there is a much better way to do this if we all cooperate, [ open source. it's the way of the future! ] and I know I'm not the only one out there who's interested!

So, I've got a suggestion for anyone who thinks that's really cool - and - pity for anyone who doesn't [ and by pity, he means judgment. he gestures excitedly with his hands as he introduces his brilliant concept ] - 2016: A Space-Time Odyssey - a series of free weekly lectures about anything and everything we've got here. Talks about different worlds, science, history, art lessons, concerts - I know we've got some musicians here - basically anything anyone signs up to talk about, teach, perform, or however you communicate things where you're from. Since we don't have a lecture hall we can broadcast the talks - give ourselves a fun routine....and if that doesn't work for someone, I can post the notes I'm so gonna take of all of these. Who's in? Who wants to go first?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ kate laughs, loud and from the belly. ]

I think there's no cause to sound the self-esteem alarms yet. I promise.

[ it's a good laugh, the kind that makes him genuinely happy to hear.

he points to his eyes and then at her ]

I'm keeping my eyes on you - and one hand on the button.

[ before breaking into a smile ]

You want a drink or something?

Well -- [ she smirks ] -- since it's a little early for mojitos, what have you got in the way of fine mineral waters?

[ she's joking. right? ]

[ hey, hours mean nothing in space, he wouldn't judge. ]

I have very fine don't-ask-where-it-came-from water. [ he smiles and starts walking towards the kitchen ]

I suppose I could settle. [ she remains cheeky. ] Unless you've got anything better to suggest.

Not yet, but stay tuned.

[ they are working on ice cream.

he hands her a bottle of water, and continues to lead her towards his room. ]

Hey, did you manage to grab hat pic? Cuz I think I might know who could pull it off.

[ cisco's been telling him of some of the toys he put together, and they sound damn impressive. ]

Oh! Yeah -- I sure did. [ she pulls up a file on her device, showing a purple hearing aid. ] This is what he's got right now. They're an older version of the, uhm, ones that I'm used to him wearing. He's got a newer, sleeker pair these days.

Oh - awesome - [ he gives the pic a scrutinizing look. it may not mean a lot to him, but it might work for cisco. he forwards the pic to himself. ]

Have you met Cisco? I think this might be just up his alley -

I have, actually. [ and by the way her expression lights up, it's clear she approves of him. ] You think he'd help?

I think he'd be all over it.

[ he approves of her approval. space nerdbros have to stick together! ]

...That's fantastic. [ there's an excited jitter to her movements. she hopes clint can grow to appreciate the way other people help -- and the way they care. ] Really, really fantastic.

I'll ask him about it and call you.

[ he nods. he's not holding his breath for appreciation from clint, but helping him is what they're in this for anyway. well, that and helping kate. ]

But I think it's the sort of project he'd be great at.

Guess this means I should tell him about the, uhm, Hawkeye thing. [ kate smiles. ] Not that it's a huge secret or anything. But it doesn't always come out organically.

I can keep it anonymous if you want, but you can totally tell Cisco - he's cool.

[ nerdy sidekick bros stick together. ]

Oh, God, no. Honestly? The secrecy is more of a formality, these days. Nearly everyone who matters, back home, knows. Even Clint flashes his Avengers ID now and then when out of costume. Only...

[ how to tackle this? ] There was a big rift in the hero community, a couple years ago, about secret identities. And whether people should be registering themselves with the government. I was on the against side, 'cause there are plenty who are entitled to their secret identity -- so sometimes it feels a little strange to not actually care that much about protecting mine.

Registering with the government? [ he frowns at that. as someone who not that long ago hacked into the secure servers of a secret government agency no one's even heard of in the conspiracy-nut community - that sounds like a terrible idea to him.

as someone who's been on the receiving end of the fbi's shoot-first-ask-questions-later mentality - it sounds like an even worse idea to him. ]

You have good taste in sides.

[ they work with the deo, but that's because alex is there. it's alex kara trusts, and it's kara winn trusts. not the government as a whole. ]

I like to think so. [ but don't we all? ] But I do empathize with what the other side stood for -- initially, at least. There's a shit-ton of collateral damage in this line of work, and...and just before this whole thing kicked off? A group of young heroes made a critical misstep in a battle against this bad dude who literally exploded -- and took most of the hero team and a local school with him. Plus more casualties, besides. It made passing the Registration Act pretty easy for those who supported it. Some days, I can't even blame them. There was a lot of anger.

[ he shuts the door behind them as they finally make it into his room. ]

Yeah that's understandable but -- so are a lot of terrible decisions. Tying a leash to superheroes is step one of the end of heroism and the beginning of super armies. And there's no such thing as a completely secure encryption, even in the hypothetical impossible vacuum case of the registry being protected by every lock in existence and no one ever looking at it unless it somehow becomes necessary - sooner or later someone is gonna break the locks and be able to neutralize the most powerful protection the world's got. Guess it all comes down to who do you trust - the people out there risking their lives for you, or the government.

[ can you tell who he trusts? he's keeping it so well hidden. ]

A training program by heroes for heroes though, yeah -

Exactly. [ she isn't shy; she walks right in after him, and the only reason she doesn't immediately take a seat on the corner of his bed is because it's hard to get a fitting accomplished when you're seated. ] I mean, that's what I told Cap when he tried to shut down the Young Avengers. We needed him and the other full-fledged Avengers to give us guidance, not try and muscle us out of the picture. If someone's a hero, they're not just going to hang up their cape and stop helping people...

Anyway, it was Captain America who spear-headed the anti-registration side. As bull-headed as he can be, he definitely had the right side too. And was good enough to break my team out of jail after we got rounded up by the pro-registration side.

[ he's so wrapped up in the conversation he's actually managed to forget for a moment that he's supposed to be taking her measurements. ]

Jail? Did you manage to undo the registration act, or are you like a..fugitive vigilante now?

[ locking up a hero. once more he has to ask - what the hell is wrong with multiverse?! ]

Not anymore. That war ended a while back. [ but not without repercussions. ] There were a lot of pardons handed out in the aftermath.

The war?

[ jesus. a superhero war? that sounds like something that would be super cool on the big screen or in a comic book - and nightmarish hell to live through.

he instinctively seeks out her hand, to offer some comfort. ]

The war, yeah. [ there is a note of exhaustion in her voice -- not for winn's question, of course. but for the memory of what had happened. she hadn't met clint, yet. the avengers had been as good as split up. the young avengers had inherited quite a heavy burden. ]

It left us fractured. Left a crack for a villain to slip in and seize control of almost everything. But like I said, it was a while back.

[ kate brushed a crease out of her shirt. ] And back then my outfit was a little on the silly side. I'm looking forward to your thoughts for this one, though.

[ that's his cue, isn't it? he knows all too well when a topic is unwelcomed. turning, he picks up his tape measure and turns back to her. ]

Right! I got a lot of them, but first let's get the technicalities out the way. Do you uh -- wanna do it yourself, or should I?

[ some measurements are pretty well...awkward, and he's not going to assume she's ok with him taking them. ]

I trust you. [ kate answers as she finger-combs her long, black hair into a bun and ties it off with an elastic. no need for that to get in the way. ] If you're good with it, I am. This isn't my first time under the tape measure. Bespoke party gowns are kind of an unavoidable thing in my family's tax bracket.

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