Some Important Follow-Up

[photonicfighter]

Excuse me. If everyone who went to Santa Carlita has a moment?

[Dakki pauses briefly to give people a chance to pay attention. That's how this is done, right?]

I've followed up with Tachibana, and it turns out that he put a tracking device on something that belonged to me. It's gone now, but apparently, the agents are now on the lookout for interdimensional aliens, not just ones from other planets.

I should have been more cautious. I'm sorry. Could the other agents confirm if they've planted anything, too, before I go and get everyone shaking themselves down for bugs?

...and that said, now that we're all back to ourselves, I'm very curious... did the 'aliens' pose any actual threat? What was that all even about? I'm not impressed with a government whose first reaction to extraterrestrial life is to panic and try to lock it up. That can't be the entire story, can it?

Comments

[theflyingone]

Everyone, place your things in Hammerspace or ask someone to do it for you. Time does not pass there, so their devices should not work.

[photonicfighter]

Ah, it doesn't? That's good advice, then. At least until we can confirm that nothing else was planted.

[acapriciousthing]

My overlay didn't track anyone, there wasn't time.

They were still trying to figure out if the alien was a threat. They just knew at least one alien was there and hadn't disclosed their arrival. There was never enough information to be sure... or to be sure he was harmless. They're not just looking for extradimensional threats in addition, it's now the main focus. Because as far as Area 54 was concerned, the extradimensional ones did prove themselves a threat.

If we ever end up back in that one, it's going to be a Situation.

[photonicfighter]

Alright. Good to know.

Have aliens ever been a threat? Was there a history of of previous bad interactions? Or would that information be classified beyond your overlay's level?

That was my worry. We'll need to be on the alert for that.

[claudiometer]

....oh. Gr-twelve. [Yes, she did just say 'gr12.'] Another world that hates us.

[photonicfighter]

Ger-twelve?

[Now there's some slang she's not familiar with. Right...?]

...how many does that make, now?

[chalicejoker]

I should be alright. He was trying to recruit my overlay to battle interdimensional ninjas with him before we left.

[claudiometer]

Internet slang. I'm not sure if it's a direct offshoot of the inflationary-language comedy gag or just a rhyme pun, but the original was 'gr9.' In this case, the exaggeration is because this is not in fact great by any stretch of the imagination.

As for places that hate us... Nova Venezia, the Illuminants, maybe not all of Bando but certainly the empire that lost the peninsula, Newport assuming the Manticore didn't stay down, possibly some corners of Pogworld, the new Olympian regime doesn't hate us as such but will definitely have planned for our interference if there's a next time, and who knows what other swaths of destruction got left in people's wakes before Moebius.

And that's just the stuff I've been around for. The only one I can say we got positive attention for any amount of standing out on was the Grid, because Programs are very forgiving of their Users by design.

[photonicfighter]

....you know, I'd say that sounds completely ridiculous if I didn't know for a fact that we've got at least two interdimensional ninjas.

[photonicfighter]

Oh? Ohhhh, I see, so it's playing on a purposeful typo, that plays on an accidental typo, that...

...that's not very great at all. That many places have it out for us now? I don't know if I should feel better, or worse.

[claudiometer]

Subtlety is not exactly our strong suit.

[breakaleginhalf]

...wait what the fuck.

[photonicfighter]

A team is only as stealthy as the noisiest member....

[breakaleginhalf]

Space mall isn't fond of us either. But I think that's more cos like, half of the Empress's crew had bounty posters.

[claudiometer]

'Hate' is pretty strong wording for most of those, really. More... definite suspicion and wariness.

Those of us who actually dealt with folks in Bando were more grateful for the help than upset about where it came from, but the kind of splash made there? That's gonna get around. Greece is more a problem in the sense that Prometheus plans for contingencies - we shifted things in his favor way more than we didn't, so his first plan won't be 'kick them out,' but that'll probably be on his list. That's just How A Prometheus Do.

The Manticore and the Illuminants are the bigger problems, the former because we kinda killed him and the latter because they've already broken into Liminal once. I'm really not sure how to classify the eldritch crap from right before I got here - it was definitely a threat, but either they hate everything or don't understand the concept.

[claudiometer]

That's because pretty much everyone on board when she left Gehenna was a criminal or political prisoner.

[rustyhonesty]

I probably woke their interest as well. Running around in my vampire form in shadows. At least one walked into said shadows. Ugh...

[Maybe he didn't do so well investigating this one after all? Whoops. That's a punch back.]

[theflyingone]

[ In this moment, Dakki is one of the few people who can get Altair to strip naked in .5 seconds ]

Access to the records and the record player will also be delayed until we are sure.

[ And everything else he picked up from 80s California. This is just the cherry on top of the cake of bitter disappointment. ]

If worlds keep seeing us for what we are, I must begin to hold required lessons on blending in at the start of every Jaunt.

[ Knowing how much the younger Travelers hate required education, he thinks that threat has more clout than it usually might. ]

[theflyingone]

Did you kill him?

[photonicfighter]

Suspicion and wariness aren't going to be in our favor, still.

I do remember something to that effect being mentioned about Prometheus. I think that situation is more likely to be... delicate, than actually negative. Here's hoping we recognize that in time, if it comes up.

...broken into liminal? So that's something that's possible? That makes sense, when you really think about it.... It's good to get this information circulating on the network again, at least. Some of this, I've heard. Some of this, I haven't.

[rustyhonesty]

No. I didn't even hurt anyone. Most I did was disarming and distracting them.

[photonicfighter]

[She'd be flattered if she knew, honest. And maybe a little concerned.]

Keep in mind, any tracking tags would have had to have been placed by an agent. I don't think you were on their radar for most of the jaunt? And I didn't see you around at all after the breakout...

I would be very glad for some lessons on blending in! I did the best I could this time around, but it simply wasn't good enough.

[unconventionalelf]

They had devices for tracking? Isn't that cheating in a hunt?

[ More reasons to not like those men in weak dark armor.]

I, might not have helped too much with the failed spell I cast when I freaked out.

[loyalrebel]

I have firm suspicions, as one of the.... overlays who was an Illuminant, that they care more about stopping the Arcana than us as Travelers.

Regardless, the Illuminants are highly aware of us and should be treated with utmost respect at all times.

[photonicfighter]

Cheating isn't a concern when they think it's a matter of security. This isn't a game of some sort.

...and it is what it is. I was hoping that anything strange that happened during the breakout would just be waved off as 'oh, they're aliens'. Apparently, they're smarter than that.