[Jaunt] Testing, testing...

[vrepit_no]

All right, let's get a headcount. This is Shiro - Takashi, might be a better plan here. Speak up with your name, faction, and if you know anyone who's infiltrating or missing please!

I'm getting the feeling we were at least partly anticipated here. Can we get a run-down of which colors mean what and whether or not people expecting us is a good thing here? It was much clearer in Questing Country.

Comments

[leftbehindagain]

And that would be the main reason I'm not dropping the honorific, Shiro-san. [Even when there's not a ready source of confusion, it helps.]

This is Naoki. I'm still with the Revolutionary faction, but considering I helped start it that doesn't really surprise me. Naoto, Kanji, and Jean haven't responded to me. I don't think Anafiel-san or Hanamura are here at all, so there's probably a walkabout.

I don't know if this means Naoto and Kanji are the same people they were last time. [And he's not sure whether to hope Kanji is or isn't, all things considered.]

Being anticipated... isn't as bad a thing here as it could be in most other places. I'm a little surprised it came from the Cryptos and not the Revolutionaries, considering three-quarters of the officer pool vanished at the end of the last jaunt.

[vrepit_no]

You really can just call me Takashi, you know. But all right, all right, whatever makes you comfortable. This is going to be a weird Jaunt. [But absolutely awesome too.]

I've got white lights - so that's... Variable, right? Except for one arm. Which I suppose I expected it to be different, but I didn't think it could actually change colors like that.

I'm missing Allura - I don't think she's here, or Keith, but that should mean they're together, wherever they are. Jean's giving me that weird busy signal - I'm assuming that means he's here but infiltrating. Tachibana's not here either. Or Kinji.

[leftbehindagain]

...ah. There's SHIRO. You should probably brace yourself for the confusion either way.

White is Variable, yes. What's going on with your arm?

Jean's definitely here somewhere. I also need to keep an eye out for Eren-san, in case he needs de-infiltrating.

[vrepit_no]

Heh. Don't worry, I talked with Naoto some while we were still in liminal space, so I at least knew it was coming.

Usually my arm is a metal and ceramic prosthetic. Here I have feeling in it, like if it were flesh... but its lights are purple to the shoulder. I'm guessing that's weird.

[leftbehindagain]

...No, that would be partial Automata corruption. [And it possibly says a few things about the nature of Shiro's prosthetic, but Naoki's not going to speculate about that on a public channel.] I'm not sure as of yet what's up with the Automata themselves at the moment.

In any case, we're not on the Grid proper - seems this is a joint mission to another system to try to revive it.

[vrepit_no]

Mm. Corruption. My favorite word. [no it's not.] There do seem to be a few Automata around as part of the crew, so something happened...

That's what I'm hearing too. Does ZODIAC mean anything to you? Other than the astrological system, that is.

[leftbehindagain]

Not from experience, no. We had our hands full with the Grid last time - other systems didn't really come up.

[vrepit_no]

A big mystery then. Should be interesting! Mm! I think I just saw Jean in Miner Blue. Does it feel like there are a lot of Cryptos around here?

[leftbehindagain]

...yes and no? Most of the ones I've seen so far are people who were Cryptos last time, so it's not necessarily a surprise that they would be again. Proportionally it might be a larger sample than you'd expect, but by the end of the last jaunt there weren't a lot of Miners left on the Grid, and the Defenders hadn't exactly made themselves popular.

[vrepit_no]

Really! I admit, I'm a little surprised about the Miners. Defenders almost never wind up popular unless there's a war going on that they can protect people in. But there are always explorers and information hounds out there. Was the incursion that bad? To lose so many of them?

[leftbehindagain]

It was less because of the fighting and more because of the other options. Most of them ended up refactioning into the rebellion, and a few joined the Cryptos.

[vrepit_no]

How does that work? Refactioning, I mean. That was definitely not a part of the movie.

[leftbehindagain]

[...what movie?]

SHIRO passed it on via Interface, so I'd assume the other factions would do the same thing - other than the Automata, anyway. That one's forcible. I'm not sure how other factions fold Priority in.

[vrepit_no]

So everyone else is voluntary, then? We don't have to worry about suddenly winding up conscripted?

[leftbehindagain]

Every other faction that I'm aware of, though... some of the Cryptos may not be above manipulating people into making the choice.

[Not all of them, but he can't not acknowledge that, even when Kanji can't respond.]