Inception or Double Rainbow, pick your meme

[triggerhappytraitor]

I'm talking with Matthew Cuthbert, one of the Travelers from the first time we were here. Azure is very insistent that he's Stone, and has been this whole jaunt, only Matthew himself had an overlay, one who died in the storm last week.

Has there ever been this sort of... layered infiltration before?

Comments

[thornsofmalkav]

Not that I've heard of, but I mean, it would make sense if this is a sort of... Jaunt within a Jaunt. Like the Jaunt on Mars is his group's Jaunt, but their Jaunt is our Jaunt.

... would you want to see if de-infiltrating does anything? Because, uh, I probably should be able to do it now that the stuff that was keeping me from doing it for Nabiki doesn't matter. Or I could teach other people how to.

[triggerhappytraitor]

What was keeping you from doing it before?

If it worked, that would mean both Stone and Matthew would be sharing a body, wouldn't it?

[thornsofmalkav]

Just... stuff. It doesn't matter.

[She's crossing her fingers you'll drop this.]

But I mean, they are already, but Stone would be able to take the driver's seat if he wanted if someone woke him up inside the other Matthew.

[triggerhappytraitor]

[[but why even mention it if-- ]]

There's a difference between sharing with an overlay and having someone else in your head.

[[... one moment as he. Has to collect his focus as unpleasant memories threaten to scatter it]]

[thornsofmalkav]

[to explain why she didn't just use it for Nabiki? but yeah, that was dumb to say. never mind.]

Yeah. It's more like... hm. What will basically happen is that Stone would be the one that's awake, but after he's gone the other Matthew will be able to remember things he did or said out loud while Stone was awake. Just not any of Stone's thoughts.

I don't know if he'll remember anything Stone would say over the Network. Since nobody's double infiltrated before, I mean.

[triggerhappytraitor]

.... that sounds like if Matthew agreed, he'd be giving up control of himself to someone else.

[[That. Really. Really does not sound good. Worse than not good. Starting to inch way too close to flashback territory not good.]]

public -> private (double protected)

[thornsofmalkav]

Yeahhhhhhh. So maybe not the best idea, sorry. You guys might have to tell, um, Azure that they'll probably have to wait a while to get Stone back.

[Switching to private and double protected:]

There's, um, full de-infiltration, what I like to call Ectoplasmic Embodiment, but. Uh. I'd have to teach someone else to do that. Because you can only do it so often and I used it to get someone else out of infiltrating as a Past Group Investigator.

Private level II all the way

[triggerhappytraitor]

[[Just a moment, he just... needs to stabilize himself a bit.]]

Someone else was doubled?

Re: Private level II all the way

[thornsofmalkav]

Yeah. I had a bond thing with them from an old Jaunt. So even though they kept registering as the other person on the Network, my bond said who else they were. And I told the person they were inside and the other person was willing to have the first person pulled all the way out of them. Not naming names because they both wanted to be private about it.

Azure is some kind of companion creature for Stone, right? That's probably how they figured it out too, because most of the companion creature we bring back come back because they bonded to us somehow. And this, uh, double Infiltration and half Investigation can fool the Network but not magic bonds. Or anyway, that's my theory.

I'm still kind of boggled that double Infiltration is even a thing. That's, like, stacking the minds three deep.

[carbonatedscientist]

I'd be up for learning, if you're willing to teach.

[Because this sounds useful.]

[thornsofmalkav]

Oh sure! I'd be willing to teach full de-Infiltration too--I call it Ectoplasmic Embodiment--but you need to learn how to heal with goo before you can make temporary Jaunt bodies, which you need for that.

But just even normal de-Infiltration is a handy tool to have.

[carbonatedscientist]

I wasn't aware that much was possible!

But yes, starting with the simplest one should be our starting point. Far easier to build off of that.

[thornsofmalkav]

Yeah! I, uh, did it back in Questing Country. Which I think was the Jaunt before your first?

Man, I'm starting to think I should do another Liminal Salon again--just so we can all share the cool shit we've figure out. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has.

[carbonatedscientist]

I'm not sure--my first one was with the magic school.

[It is evident from his mental tone that he did not enjoy that one, probably because he was a teenager and also not all that great at magic.]

That sounds like that would be an excellent idea--I know those of us who haven't been around as long could use a chance to learn more things.

[thornsofmalkav]

The one before that was Questing Country.

And yeah, I'll totally do that. I've learned, like, three different kinds of crazy stunts and I don't think I ever did my Liminal Masque trick for everyone--just, like, a couple people at the Beta Salon. Although, huh, maybe I need to figure out how to schedule this with the uh... I think I'll name it Memorial Bridge? Yeah, the Memorial Bridge stuff. So four crazy stunts I can show. Unless someone else wants to demonstrate some of the others. I know Naoki and Claudia can do Liminal Thematics, 'cause I taught them, and I'm hoping to teach Matthew.



... anyway. When do you want to learn how to do de-Infiltration? Is now good?

[carbonatedscientist]

Now is perfect, I think. I haven't gotten arrested yet.

Would meeting in Liminal work for you? Or is there somewhere else we should be?

[carbonatedscientist]

And here I'd been thinking Stone was just...wherever the others went on their separate Jaunt-thing.

That's good to know, thank you.

[scarsolderthanyou]

So from what I'm reading here, I either get to sort of step back and let this Stone person take my body over for the rest of the Jaunt, or we just hope this all sorts itself out when it's over?

We even sure it'll do that? Sort itself out, I mean?

[triggerhappytraitor]

If this truly is acting like a jaunt within a jaunt, it should sort itself out.

It's entirely your choice if you want to allow Stone to come forward. This situation... is unusual, to say the least.

[scarsolderthanyou]

[There's a long pause while he thinks it over.]

This is a thing that ain't happened before. So maybe somebody should see what happens when it does, in case it happens again. I can tell somebody who's part of both groups, if you all disappear before we get separated.

[thornsofmalkav]

I can definitely do it for you. [There's a slight pause, then,] It's possible to separate people fully, but, uh, I personally can't do it now because... I guess you could say my goo reserves are low. I taught another person, but we think he got shunted off to where a couple other members of our team went. If we can make contact with him, he's got enough goo and he's willing to come, do you want us to try that instead? It might mean waiting a day or two until we can arrange to pull him over.

[scarsolderthanyou]

Goo reserves?

[Matthew sounds a little amused at the explanation.]

You kids sure do have strange names for things. If that's somethin' you can do, by all means, I 'magine that'll make a lot of people happier. Though that means you won't be testin' the first thing out, unless you can do that one in the meantime.

[thornsofmalkav]

Uh, yeah. Because it involves making Stone a body to inhabit until the Jaunt is over and to do that you need a lot of... well, I call it ectoplasm, but most people just call it 'goo' because it's gooey. It's what our Hosts use to patch people up when they die in liminal space and go to the Floor. We, uh, managed to isolate it about a year and a half back.

I could probably test just pulling Stone into the driver's seat, though. Or hell, kill two birds with one, hah, Stone and walk Sento through doing it himself, because he wants to learn how to de-infiltrate.

[scarsolderthanyou]

I've seen when we come back from dying in our spaces. Never thought to call it "goo". Then 'gain, you folks seem to be a lot more casual about this than we ever were.

Let me know when you need me for this. I can meet y'all wherever you need me.

[Never has he been so glad the network doesn't convey tone. He's nervous, and hopes they have a little space of time for him to get himself more fully around to the idea.]

[thornsofmalkav]

Um, would a couple hours from now be okay? We'd be doing it at Sento's new Created Room in Liminal. We'll show you what the door looks like.