✞ 001

[zekken]

Who: Yuuki Konno and maybe you?
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: Briefly on the Marsiva / then on the SS First Breath
When: Backdated pre-shuffle on the Marsiva / Post-shuffle on the SS First Breath

[ At a glance, the girl onscreen might just look like a fifteen-year-old girl with long dark hair and red eyes. There might be a very slight hint of purple color in her skin too, that looks to be a bit unusual to be a normal human. Look more closely, you'll spot a pair of pointy ears past her long locks of hair.

Yet another elf, it seems, until a pair of transparent, black bat-shapped fairy wings unfold themselves behind her back. She only shows her wings very briefly and as they fold onto her back again, they disappear. For a moment, she looked like a giant, human-sized fairy and now she's back to looking like some kind of elf.

She's examining herself, flexing her fingers, looking at her arms, and hopping up and down. It's almost like she's checking if her body is properly functioning.

Then she finally turns towards the feed, a big smile spreading across her face. No big deal that she was being recorded checking herself out. ]

Yo! [ A wave of her hand. ] I didn't see any tutorial or beginning quest NPCs around, so... can someone help a newbie out? I need to know if this is real or did I just dive into another VRMMORPG?

[ It feels real. But she has to confirm. ]

[ After the Shuffle: Action for the SS First Breath ]

[ Yuuki is on board the ship, already helping herself to the chocolate pudding dessert for new crew nenbers. At first, she cautiously takes a small taste. Then she starts scarfing down the dessert even more quickly. It's been a long time since she ate a delicious dessert. Real dessert. ]

Comments

action [marsiva]

[viran]

[Mahna's just about had enough of space when he comes across Yuuki. There's none like her in Thedas, but he's not about to make rush judgments based on appearance.]

It's real as far as I can see.

[zekken]

Hey there! [ Wave, wave. Nonstop smiling. ]

Hmm...! It sure does feel that way. [ She flexes her fingers again some. It's strange.

Then she looks Mahna up and down. Pointy ears like the fairies do, but ALO didn't have a face tattoo customization feature. ]

By any chance, you wouldn't happen to be from ALO too?

[viran]

No, I'm not. [He's not sure what an ALO even is at this point but he offers an acknowledging nod in return.] I'm of Clan Lavellan in the Free Marches of Thedas.

[zekken]

Thedas? [ Hm! A tilt of her head, then a nervous laugh. ] I've never heard of that online game.

[viran]

[Mahna doesn't know what two of those words are, so he just sort of blinks for a moment.] That's because it's not a game. It's as real as this place is.

[zekken]

[ A thoughtful pause, placing her hand on her chin. ]

So, are you telling me you always looked like that and there's a bunch more like you in this Thedas place? The pointy ears are the real deal?

[viran]

There are many more like myself. We're elves. [He points to himself.] I am a Dalish elf, specifically.

[zekken]

Oh! I know about elves already. What I mean is... you may be the first real elf I've met.

[ They only exist in works of fiction where she's from. Like video games. She might even pass as an elf whenever she puts away her wings. ]

But "Dalish" is a new one to me. What's the difference between a Dalish elf and regular elf?

[viran]

In Thedas, the differences are largely cultural. We, Dalish, leave in nomadic tribes, rather than in human cities. [He's not about to touch the alienage issues with a ten-foot-pole right now.]

[zekken]

I see, I see! And what about those markings? What's the story on those?

[viran]

[Mahna raises his hand to his face as he considers the issue of telling a shem about blood writing.] Private, but know they mark us as Dalish.

audio;

[feathery]

[Did someone call for an NPC. Davesprite hasn't actually been one of those proper in a while, but it still trips some Help the Player Character wires in his head.]

Didn't exactly get here too long ago, but it's real. Or at least as real as reality TV can get. There are probably some schmucks around convinced it's all a coma-induced hallucination or something equally cliche, but it's not a video game. Probably.

[zekken]

Reality television? How cool!

[ She hasn't watched any TV in... awhile. But she knows what reality TV is. The audio feed can't show her spinning in circles on the Marsiva, trying to search for any hidden cameras. If there were cameras, they've hidden them well! ]

I was totally thinking this might have been another video game. I don't even look like this in real life... [ Despite how weird and impossible it may be, there's still some cheeriness in her voice. ]

[feathery]

Well, that's a new one.

[It's only very, very mild bemusement.] All the player characters I've met look more or less the same in and out of the game. So I guess that means you're usually not a bat girl, huh.

[zekken]

Not a bat girl, but close enough! The races from my previous game were based on fairies.

[ A bit of a nervous laugh, rubbing back of her neck. ] Nah... I'm actually just a boring, ol' human in the real world!

[feathery]

Nothing wrong with that.

[She can't see him, but he shrugs anyway with the sound of ruffled feathers.]

I pulled NPC duties in the game I'm from. Like dispensing dumb riddles to my player about his quest and watching his back when the monsters got too tough.

[zekken]

[ There were some... problems, but she won't further discuss that. ]

Eeeeh? You're an NPC? No way! [ That's more of an expression than denying that he is one. ]

Did you get any recycled or looping dialogue?

[feathery]

If I do, I haven't found it yet.

[Or, now that he thinks about it—]

I guess I've got a lot of cliches and simple plot clues shrouded in obliquitous puzzle dialogue. But that's boring, so I skip over it most of the time.

Video

[alwayscomeback]

[What? ]

Vrrrmooorgpeegee?

Video

[zekken]

Pffft- hahaha! Nice try. Not a gamer, I see. That's fine.

Video

[alwayscomeback]

Ohhhhh. Are you talking about the video games? Allen showed me that one with the plumber?

Video

[zekken]

Plumber? Oh! I think I know which one you're talking about. [ Haven't heard about that one in awhile. ] That one's not really the VR kind of game though.

[ A pause. ] That's short for virtual reality.

Video

[alwayscomeback]

Oh! I remember VR! We went to that waystation with the Virtual Reality dome! It was kinda cool. I didn't know you could play games in them.

Video

[zekken]

I didn't know there were VR domes. Sounds advanced! The kind of VR I've dived into... errr... uh...

[ She gestures with her hands some, trying to think of how to explain to a non-VRMMO player. Can't use words like AmuSphere or NervGear. ]

You'd put this... machine on top of your head and you'd completely immerse yourself in virtual reality! It's like living a whole different life.

Re: Video

[alwayscomeback]

Yeah, you could program a huge area as you liked, it was pretty neat.

Ohhhhhhh so you'd...carry it around with you?

Video

[zekken]

Oh no, no. You wouldn't have to carry it around! All you have to do is sit or lie down, get comfortable wherever, and put the machine on your head.

It stimulates the nerves in the brain. [ She says, tapping her head with her finger. ] For example, you can feel yourself walking in the virtual reality that you see within the machine. But in the real world, your body is lying down.

[alwayscomeback]

Huh.

That would be the laziest way to get exercise ever. I approve!

[zekken]

Actually! There are some players that use it as a form of dieting. Food and drink taste just as real as the stuff of the real world.

[alwayscomeback]

...Except they're, what, starving themselves?

[Does he sound horrified? He sure is horrified. ]

action | First Breath

[detectivewonder]

Hey, savor that! It's the best thing you'll have to eat until we reach another planet with decent food.

[zekken]

[ Too late. She already gulped it down quickly. Regardless of the quality of the food on the ship, she still seems excited to try it out. ]

There's more food here I can eat?!

[ Then she clears her throat. Getting a bit too excited there. She might look like some fantasy fairy from some medieval setting, but she talks like... a normal modern day teenager.

She holds her hand out to shake. ]

Name's Yuuki!

[detectivewonder]

Tim Drake. I'm your captain, but you can ignore that until there's someone trying to kill us. Everyone does.

[His handshake is firm, measuring, quick - a martial artist's, or a businessman's brisk clasp.]

Our kitchen's decently stocked, but it's nothing too exciting. Or... exciting at all. Some decent beef jerky from the last planet we visited, I guess.

[zekken]

Pleased to meet you, Mr. Drake! [ When she pulls her hand away, she points her finger like a gun. ] Suddenly, I've got knowledge about using the ship's weaponry. I'll make sure no one kills us!

[ Her shoulders slump a bit... but she's quickly back to grinning. ] Ahhh... well! That's too bad about the food selection. But I'll live.

[detectivewonder]

And we'll appreciate it. We've got one weapons officer already, but more than one weapon - so you could still be a big help.