Mingle for the oldies

[bb_wolf]

Who: Anyone who is immortal, inordinately long lived or just likes hanging out with old people?
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: Málum on the Iskaulit
When: End of November

Broadcast: Text
[The broadcast is simple.]

Málum. Tonight. Immortal or near enough meet up. Buy your own.

Action: Málum

[Bigby is there, drinking whiskey and smoking cheap, horrible and stinky cigarettes. The rest of you can do what you want.]

Comments

[cloakand_danger]

[Yuan nods, and reluctantly explains:] All living beings have mana flowing through their bodies, and everyone's individual signature is distinct, like a fingerprint. You'd need a magitech scanner to identify someone by their mana signature, but any half-elf can sense them to some degree - can tell the difference between elves, half-elves, humans, and...other things.

[He side-eyes Vash.] I don't have any idea what you are, but I can tell that your power is on a different level from mine.

[goldenglasses]

[Vash nods along with Yuan's explanation as if he's listening. But his slightly slacked jaw makes it look like he's not following anything Yuan is saying.]

Well, I'm what people on my planet would call an Independent Plant. [Saying it out loud so easily felt so wrong, but trying to be honest. He keeps reminding himself of this fact. People here aren't overly likely to be afraid of a Plant.]

Sooooooo, that makes you a half-elf? [Maybe he could follow along!]

[cloakand_danger]

Independent...Plant. [That will earn a skeptical look. He's never actually sensed a sapient plant-person, but Vash certainly doesn't look much like he'd imagine one to be. No leaves or anything.]

And yes, I am. I hope that's not a problem. [In a tone that makes clear that 1) he's used to it being a problem for some people, and 2) if it is, he's happy to make it your problem instead of his.]

[goldenglasses]

Yup.

[Sorry were you expecting Vash to explain what an Independent Plant is? That's a lot of effort.]

I only see it as being a problem if you're only allowed to like other half elfs or something.

[Elf is at least a term he understands. He wonders what the other half is. Human? Unicorn? Who knows? Is it rude to ask? It's probably rude to ask.]

[cloakand_danger]

[For now, since Vash doesn't seem inclined to talk about it, Yuan decides to assume it means he's somehow connected to his world's Mana Tree. That would explain a lot.]

...Heh. I won't pretend there aren't people who would prefer that, but no. [He looks distant and thoughtful for a moment.] I'm not like them.

[goldenglasses]

[Vash can sense that with an answer like that and look in Yuan's eyes there's a long history there.]

Well, I'm glad you're not. Would have made life here very difficult because I'm not really sure how many half-elfs there are in the fleet. I've seen some elf-elfs, but don't know about half's.

That and I might have been in a bit more trouble if you didn't like others enough to help me out before.

[cloakand_danger]

I've met some, as well. The prejudices that exist in my world don't seem to make as much difference here thus far, for which I'm grateful. [He's not going to count on it continuing, though.

The reference to their earlier meeting gets Vash a dry look, though at least he doesn't seem as grumpy about it as before.] I told you then that I could tell you didn't need my help, and you've as much as confirmed it by being here.

[goldenglasses]

Hey! Me being here doesn't mean a thing except I'm old. I mean, it just means I need even more help. These poor old bones can't handle a lot of activity anymore.

[Vash tries to hide his giant grin at that lie behind his drink. He really doesn't expect Yuan to believe that complaining.]

[cloakand_danger]

Mm-hmm. [And he doesn't, but he's also finding the excessive protests amusing despite himself.] So out of curiosity, oh wise old man, around how old are you, anyway?

[goldenglasses]

Oh yeah. I guess compared to some here I might actually be really young. [Its still an interesting concept to him. He's been the oldest humanoid of his planet for so long.] I'm a hundred and thirty four. Yourself? Am I young or old to you?

[cloakand_danger]

I don't remember exactly - I never knew my birthday. [But then he grins sharply.] Upwards of four thousand years, at least. ...And even normal half-elves can live up to a thousand years, so even by those standards you're pretty young.

[goldenglasses]

Wow. [Vash is quiet for a moment as he considers living for thousands of years. No one knows if a Plant could live that long or not. He supposes they could if treated right. Not that he expects himself to actually make it that long. He knows his luck back home is bound to run out eventually.]

A normal half-elf? So does that mean you're not a normal one?

[Is that a rude question? Vash asks it slowly as if he can't decide if it's a question he should be asking or not.]

[cloakand_danger]

...I'm not. [The smugness falls away a little as he remembers that his gloating has brought him to a part of his story he'd rather not get into too deeply.] That's a long story, but...because we needed time to complete a particularly vital task for our world, my friends and I used an experimental method to stop our aging.

We always did intend to go back to being mortal when it was over. ...At first we did. [A faint, bitter smirk.] ...It took longer than we thought.

[goldenglasses]

That's a pretty big choice to make to help your world. At least you had some friends with you for the ride.

I suppose now that you've lived so long it's hard to want to go back to being mortal?

[cloakand_danger]

[No comment on that first part. If only it had stayed that simple.]

Honestly, it might not even be safe to reverse the changes at this point. The side-effects...at best, I'd have to be on life-support, probably for months, while my body learned how to function again. At worst, if my mana flows got too distorted in the process... [He shakes his head.] Well, my life might not be the only one threatened.

[goldenglasses]

Yeesh. Yeah, that doesn't sound very pleasant at all. I can't stand to be in bed for like... more than two days let alone months. [He makes light, but he understands how sever that would really be.]

But, I suppose, really that if you do make that choice you're basically saying you're ready for the end too. [After all, that's what being mortal means in the end.] I don't think I could make that choice myself. [He doesn't necessarily want to outlive everyone, but he know he can't make any decision that may lead to his death either.]

More so if it could threaten others. Do you just mean the friends you made that decision with you or more than them?

[cloakand_danger]

[Yuan just shakes his head. Just gonna continue dodging any attempt to talk about his 'friends' for the time being.]

...More like anyone who was helping me with the process. One of the possible side-effects of mana distortion is physical transformation into a pain-maddened monster. [He grimaces.] We've recently learned that that transformation is reversible with the right magic, but that's not as much consolation as you might think. Not something I'm eager to risk.

[goldenglasses]

Pain-maddened doesn't sound like something I'd be eager to risk either. Yeesh. Glad to hear it can be reversed for those people who it has affected.

Sounds really awful. And painful.

[cloakand_danger]

Exactly. Which is why I'm probably going to remain this way for the foreseeable future.

[But you don't get something for nothing, Vash.] So what about yourself? Were you born an 'Independent Plant', or did that happen later?

[goldenglasses]

[Ah. Crap. It was interesting hearing from others about their long, not-human lives, but he was still uncomfortable talking about himself.

Honesty. Yes. He came here saying he'd do that. Be more open. Less lies. Less hiding. Okay, now talk about yourself Vash. You can do this.]

I was born one.

[Nailed it. Vash takes an extended drink from his glass. That's all Yuan wanted to know, right? Explanations and background information? Pshhh, who needs those boring details?]

[cloakand_danger]

[Yuan waits until he's done drinking to see if any more information is forthcoming. When none appears to be, he smirks amusedly.]

All right, youngster, [you're never going to escape that one now] I think it's time for a little advice on how this works. Either you can volunteer a little more detail than that, or I can start prying around until I figure out what to ask, and maybe stumble on some questions you really don't want to answer.

[He's making an assumption that some of those exist, but with Vash being so reticent it isn't a hard leap of logic to make. He finishes with a nonchalant shrug.] It's entirely your choice.

[goldenglasses]

Well, Old Man, [Huh, felt interesting actually using that one on someone older than himself.] I suppose it's because I'm not very exciting and don't have as much to say.

I'm no hero who sacrificed anything or had any goal in mind to be long lived. I was born from a Plant. Found below one in it's protective glass casing, after some odd output readings, where it was discovered I could survive without needing to be connected to life support systems unlike the other Plants.

[He shrugs his shoulder. Acting perfectly nonchalantly about his birth as if it wasn't the first and only time anyone was aware of it happening.] Plants are just naturally long lived. No one really knows for sure how long they can live, but it's a long time as long as they're treated carefully and properly.

[cloakand_danger]

[Yuan's tone is a little odd when he next replies, like he's not sure whether to be proud of himself for figuring this out, or embarrassed that he didn't figure it out sooner:]

...So when you say 'Plant', the meaning is closer to a power plant or manufactory than... [a vague wave of his hand] vegetation?

[Look, in all fairness to Yuan, magical plant life is way more significant to his planet right now than mechanical anything.]

[goldenglasses]

[Vash makes a "gun" with his thumb and pointer and "shoots" Yuan.] You got it! Don't worry, almost everyone assumes something more like a tree or some sort at first too.

But yeah, Plants are a mix of organic and mechanical creations of humans back home. So they're a bit complicated.

[cloakand_danger]

Interesting. [At least it's a relief that he's not the only one who made that guess to start with.] ...So is it unusual for a Plant to be Independent, then?