late week two: some very special guests and some slightly old news

[thornsofmalkav]

Okay. So. We're gonna have a special guest or two on the network in just a sec, but before that I want to play a conversation I had a little bit ago. For those of you who saw it when I showed people on Naoki's bridge, I'm sorry you have to see it again, but I know he couldn't bring everyone on back then, so it's better I play it one more time. I filtered out the smell impressions for this stream. You're welcome.

[And... she's just going to show the conversation with not-Jackie Humansona where he Reveals Some Shit.]

So yeah. Shit is bananas.

[It is at this point where she triggers the Psychic Delegate for Acantha.]

Anyway! I've just put one of the Beastfolk on the line for everyone--and I've coordinated with Naoki too, so that he'll be putting another one on at the same time. I think I've got enough brain juice to give him roughly a half-hour with us, so use your time wisely? Naoki might be able to give his a little longer.

So yeah. Everyone chime in while they're still on and we'll see where we should go from here.

Comments

[insidegalra]

I need to know how many of you there are, what skills you possess, and what plans you have.

If we fail, we folk will all die.

[Anyone who has spoken to Acantha in person will realize that his tone and cadence are very different. No fear, nerves or meekness, mixed in with intense focus.]

[thornsofmalkav]

[It's pretty fucking striking.]

I can talk to people not on the network with my brain, patch someone in here about once a week, and Naoki's helping teach me healing people's minds. I want to get Humansona his memory back. I'm pretty sure it's fucking important.

Also, if I can get to the pocket dimension they keep us in, I can make about fifty pounds of matter a day.

[insidegalra]

I have arranged to get at least some of the materials and tools for memory erasure sent down. With the right expertise, they can be remixed to do a reversal, but unless there's a means of manufacture, we'll only have one dose.

Can you make specific chemical compounds?

[thornsofmalkav]

I'll have to analyze a sample first, but after that, fuck yes. And not just me. Being able to create matter in our pocket dimension is a fairly common skill for us.

Also, if people have dreamcatchers with anything in them, bring them to me and I won't even need to go to Liminal to make shit, I can just use the dreamcatcher stored energy.

[insidegalra]

Then I will trust you with it, and stop by your house with another gift when I receive it. I can fake being sick and we can make an exchange in the necessary.

What is a dreamcatcher, exactly?

[thornsofmalkav]

It's a kind of object we learned to create on another mission. Basically, it's been enchanted to keep bad dreams away by sucking them up. We can then take that energy to power magic or create matter outside of our pocket dimension.

It also fills up with thought energy naturally whenever we're in a realm of solidified thought, which means that back in our pocket dimension it will just fill up on its own after a time.

[helborn]

I've got a few full ones.

[thornsofmalkav]

Oh thank fuck. I just have my own right now. Usually I'd be able to borrow Anafiel's or Alcuin's... but they're not exactly available right now.

[cameracoded]

Mine is pretty much always full! It just... isn't all that inconspicuous, considering my dreambody is a giant, multiarmed robot.

[keepcalmcookon]

I am Ignis, known as Ember. the furry Naga. I can use elemental magic of ice, fire, and lightning--it'll hurt both allies and enemies if they're within range. I can also create matter and speak across the divide for short periods. I can travel to Liminal Space. I also can use certain items, which I can pull out of 'inventory', to heal. My meals can give a variety of improvements, although temporary--even immunity to poison or added strength, for example. I can use basically all weapons.

Two others are like me, including one that's the source of my abilities; they can't do the cooking, but they can fight and use elemental magic. Another man I know well has straight up magic, which is capable of many things.

Firo is one of our healers, Felih.

What we need from you is to know what your society is like. The delay in what is shown to people. Editing. It's possible we could hijack a signal if it'd be possible to get the support of citizenry.

[insidegalra]

Use none of those on camera; the producers are already suspicious about oddities.

[He is very stern about this.]

A small group is being exposed to live, unedited feeds right now, although there are so many that it would be impossible for a single person to catch everything happening. Insurance, in case of something that would otherwise be edited out.

The rest receive carefully monitored feeds on a delay that's called 'live', and a weekly "recap." There is always desired footage hinted at and not shown on those. The audience are then sold viewing privileges to everything else after the fact, as themed mini-series.

[keepcalmcookon]

The food wouldn't show up on camera, for the record. The rest are for critical situations. I've noted the bit about the cameras. We'll... have to consider if any of us can do something with those feeds.

What of the population above at large? Do they know we are real? Would they care if we were in danger? Fandoms can.. prevent the cancellation of normal series. I'm certain they can do more than that here if we're lucky enough.

[insidegalra]

If someone can, that would be helpful for a short period of time. I, unfortunately, don't have the programming skill to take control of the hub myself. I can use it, but not without the producers knowing exactly what I'm doing instantly.

They don't know where we come from, no. Increasingly, we're believed to be creations, not people. That isn't pervasive, yet, but it is something to take into account.

The audience are people. They have thoughts, feelings, dreams. They have also been controlled for so long that they don't know what freedom is. If the truth can be revealed in a way that can't be twisted, I believe that most would care. It would at least restrict the actions of the company, but I can't be certain of how long unless we're able to control the hub ourselves.

[helborn]

[That... sure is different. His own tone is a bit more stern as well, though not as striking a difference.]

I can do a number of things with ice and also fly, but those are super obvious. I can track things down pretty well, and I have an ability to memorize maps quickly. I can heal most injuries, survive on any organic substance, and climb walls. I can also fight with incredible strength and speed.

I can store things in a pocket space as well as cross over to the area we are in between worlds. I can change air pressure and change the temperature a bit, make a small flash grenade, do a little healing - that's what I did for you, daze someone - that's what I did to Circe, speed myself up... as well as some shapechanging and other obvious magic. I'm good at anatomy but no other science, really.

As for plans... some of our people are analyzing the midges. I did have a question - is there a computer chip or something in our necks?

[insidegalra]

Casper. I'm glad you're not another unfortunate actor.

[There's warmth in the words, although it's quickly back to business. Acantha doesn't have time for feelings right now.]

It's a relief to know you'll be hard to kill. I'm... their 'break the cutie' and unfortunately I've had to drag you into that. As a heads up, one of the actors in training has been assigned to write a script for me, likely as a test. I'll try to inform you, so at least you're not blindsided.

As for the last... No, you wouldn't have. Actors have tech in place that allows us contact with the producers, but no one else.

[helborn]

Don't worry, I'm used to that. And I'm resistant to poison too, so it's not like they can do that. It means I also can't get drunk, but eh. ... Though do you have any ideas on how they'll try to break you? If we can thwart it in a dramatic way they might have to show it for the drama and give people hope.

... Strange. I had a vision with a number of people, dead, with holes in the back of their necks. Does that bring up anything?

[insidegalra]

The plot is for me to form relationships, get close to others... and then have them painfully taken away from me with no break from grief and trauma. Illness and accidents happening to me are also possible, but with the seizures, those are less likely.

[Uncomfortably:] Kill-drones. The toxins and memory wipes are administered into the cervical spine. If by some miracle the toxins don't cause immediate death, the person won't even remember how to turn their head so they don't suffocate afterward.

[leftbehindagain]

Well, my main plan so far was keeping you alive long enough for us to be of assistance. [If Acantha didn't already have some niggling thoughts about the concoction Kai whipped up to help him, this'll probably do it.]

Possibly most relevant of my skill set associated with where we stay between missions, I can help with making supplies if necessary, and I have the means to contact a handful of us who got dropped into that focus group you mentioned. They're digging as far as they can into the corporation overseeing this disaster, and eager to help tear it down too.

I have a decent medical knowledge base, including chemistry - the stuff I mixed up for you was something else entirely, which is part of why I didn't promise replication. I can also boost someone else's work capacity, though that's most effective on a particular subgroup of stuff we picked up from another mission. And I've been doing what I can to increase your food stores as much as possible in the time allotted without drawing undue attention.

It's probably a good thing we caught on to the cameras inside of a day.

[insidegalra]

Kai? Or the person sharing his mind, I suppose. I had wondered, when the symptoms eased up so markedly. Thank you.

Medical supplies and food stores will be helpful. If we can't control the hub completely... I suspect the rest of this years crops will be sabotaged.

Do any of them have programming knowledge? If we can get an actually live feed to the entire station, and make the truth known all at once, it could drastically change the tide. And is there any way I could speak with them at all?

[Dryly.] A very good thing. If they suspect outside interference conclusively we'd all be dead in a matter of minutes. They have thousands of kill-drones in the hub.

[leftbehindagain]

You're welcome. If it improves the odds of this place being better off, I'm not above cheating like hell.

Sabotage won't help anyone, even if a good half of the foundling overcrowding people are worried about will be gone in a few weeks' time anyway. The good news is with the ocean right there, you have a readily available source of salt. I'm not sure how good it would be for pickling, but it might be worth a try.

There's at least one person up there with some programming skills to her name. Possibly more, but the vast majority of us are down here. [And he doesn't know if anyone will be able to de-infiltrate Claudia.] Unfortunately, I can only break through that barrier once a week with company on my end of the line, and I've already done that. I haven't tried combining the two before, but... there's no reason why I couldn't, other than the timing right now.

Then it's also a good thing we have some idea of what subtlety looks like, these days.

[insidegalra]

No one except the producers. Even if the quick and easy method of wiping us out is taken from them, they still have many other tools at their disposal. If the audience would object to obvious destruction, I wouldn't put it past them to be more subtle as a means of regaining their income and control.

Well, if the timing does work out, I'd like a chance to speak with her. I may be able to provide additional help, or places to locate it.

[itsananimalthing]

[Riddick is over here trying not to facepalm.]

I can't die. I think. I can see in the dark, I'm military trained, and I can fly probably any space thing you put me in if you give me a second to work out the controls. Also I can zap people with my brain.

I also have a psychic baby. Not super useful, but now you're on here, you get to hear her too, at least until Thorne dumps you off again.

[And Tara jumps in with,]

HI HI HI!

[insidegalra]

You can fly... Dispatching another hub might not be completely out of the question. The terraforming station isn't one of the stations with a constant population; so if we can fly to it, there's a fair chance that we could send more hubs before notice.

[He sounds almost excited.] Getting something to fly would be the obstacle, but there will be at least one delivery soon, if someone could be waiting to hijak the transport. It would leave a very narrow window in which complete the task, but...

[Tara surprises him, but he sounds utterly charmed, and his mental voice drops into the practiced cadence of someone very used to working with small children.]

Hi. Your father must be so very proud of you. Look at how clever you are!

[itsananimalthing]

Some of us can also kinda teleport, so if there's locked doors between us and a ship, getting to the other side is a thing we could do. Shit, if there's electronic locks, we could interface with 'em and unlock them, or I could just fry them open.

[Liminal shock is one of his favorite skills, okay. He's happy to throw it at anything.]

Tell me when the transport comes, and I can probably be there with a couple people for backup. Hijacking might not be all that hard. I'd just need to know where you need it to go and what you'd need me to do when we get there.

[As for Tara... there's something like a mental giggle, and then:]

No.

She probably means I'm more exasperated at her than proud. I'm proud, sure, but she's a fucking handful.

[Riddick sounds affectionate when he calls her a handful, at least, and Tara repeats cheerfully:]

Handful!

[insidegalra]

I will do so, as soon as I am able. There won't be alarms on the terraforming station. Transports are strictly controlled, so no one is worried about someone sneaking onto it. But they will be expecting the transport back within a window of time. They usually take the time to fully replenish their reserves before returning. So you'll have, mm, an hour or two to safely get there, and then send it back without notice.

[What's next is a complicated series of numbers.] That's the optimal flight path to the terraforming station. I don't know enough of the system myself to fully guide you once you do get there, but give me a day and I can figure out the optimal coordinates to send hubs down to.

[Acantha responds to the giggle with a laugh, and something wistful in his tone.]

All healthy children should be handfuls. It's how they learn about and interact with their world. Isn't that right, Tara?