EVENT ★ LOST IN TRANSLATION

[futurologists]

RETURN TO OSKA Upon arrival in Oska, new and returning recruits alike will find that something strange is going on. Any attempts to communicate with someone who doesn't speak the same language as you will be just that -- like you don't speak the same language. Let's hope everyone is good at charades, because you're going to be out of luck for a full day. On the second day, a text comes across -- surprisingly intelligible to everyone. Is it over? Well . . . crowley: Hello, Audentes. We are currently experiencing magitek difficulties, as you may have guessed already. Temporal insects have arrived with our latest arrivals, and as you may imagine, we have had our paws full. cherenkov: We are working out how to mitigate the pest problem for good. For now, please put your unpleasantly huge feet to use and stomp them out. Or other such methods. crowley: We have created a quick patch to facilitate text-based communications, but verbal translation will continue to be down until the insects are exterminated. Thank you for your patience. It's not over. TEMPORAL INSECTS This invasive species has worked its way in through the rifts along with the newest batch of arrivals, and information on them is available in the library (provided you can read the language it's written in!). It seems they behave like locusts, living quietly within the space between rifts for many years until their numbers suddenly balloon and they begin to swarm in search of food. These bugs move fast and pack a nasty bite, but are unarmored and easily squished. Each one is about the size of a football, and leaves a little tell-tale slime trail that makes it easy to track. They can cling to any surface, and won't hesitate to leap onto attackers and bite if they feel threatened. One can take a decently sized but non-lethal bite out of someone, but a number of them together will pose a real danger. If punctured or squished they tend to explode into moderately acidic goo that can cause caustic burns if not immediately washed off. They are attracted to any area of high temporal energy, which can be literally any surface, corner, or point on or within the castle and its grounds. As they begin to feed they cause temporal distortion in the area. This manifests as the immediate area seeming to flicker backwards and forwards through time. An insect gnawing at a table leg in the dining area, for example, might cause the area to stutter between years and years of dinner parties, ghostly attendants of all fashions and species appearing and disappearing as they enter and leave the affected area. An onlooker can't interact with temporal distortions directly, but if the insect is left to its own devices, it will eventually eat through all of the temporal energy and render the immediate area gray, frozen, and completely inert. It's highly recommended you kill or otherwise chase off an insect before it manages this, as it can do irreversible damage to a world. For affected Oska locations, please see this post. OOC NOTES The translation errors will continue through the rest of the month. For more information or to ask questions, please check the plotting post here! New bounties are available in Oska! Please remember to fill out your squidge success form before August 31, 23:59 UTC! Filling the form out is mandatory, even if you do not have the 3 squidge threads. You will not pass AC if you do not fill out the form. Characters who have been accepted on August 20th are exempt. Please direct questions relating to the success form here.

Comments

[selfimage]

[ Loki had his own share of impossible situations, including, but not limited to: repeating apocalypses, existential trauma, inter-dimensional travel and galactic jaunts that always seemed to end badly. knowing there's an organization pinpointed in a pocket dimension somewhere in the center of the multiverse isn't exactly farfetched for him.

#comicscharacters ]

As you will—it becomes clearer in time, depending on bones our ALASTAIR friends want to throw us. [ he finds a place to lean, making himself comfortable, as he's certain that this isn't the only question that she's going to have. ] Forceful volunteering due to circumstance, yes. I took a wrong turn, slipped through a crack and ended up here. They don't have enough energy to get us back right away, so we're stuck working for them until we work it up. That's what ALASTAIR does, you see—protects the timeline, and by definition, makes sure that it doesn't collapse into entropy.

You could say that it's the weight of you getting home versus the available stores of energy that they have available.

[yaomomo]

[That... sounds unpleasant, if she had to say so herself. Not that she can really say much, but she's getting the idea it won't be that easy to go home.]

So how exactly do we help them gain enough energy for that? I... admit, I've no experience with being outside of Earth, so I don't know how the rules are in this kind of situation.

[while she's not as obsessive about rules as someone else she knows, she does like having a structure to rely on.]

[selfimage]

They send us on vague missions of dimensional interest and we do our best not to make a mess of it.

[ there's a slight shrug—there's more to that, actually. there was Anwick and Chantes, after that was Nalawi, none of which really turned out the way that everyone wanted. Anwick and Nalawi, especially. the missions were harder for some than they were for others. ]

There's some direction, and we make the most of it. I'd suggest you find some kind of opportunity and make it your own. You're in the center of the multiverse now, and that doesn't come without its existential inquiries.

[yaomomo]

... My question is, why are these missions being sent, if the point is to not make a mess? What is going on with these worlds that our assistance is necessary?

[It's a lot to consider, and she knows she will eventually have to read previous logs, assuming they exist, on past missions. Understanding, in theory, what had occurred would at least give her a better direction in the future.]

Speaking of-- how much does this affect our own realities?

[selfimage]

There's not enough energy. There's a room here in Oska that explains the conception of the multiverse and the consequences that came with it. I suggest you seek it out when you get a little more comfortable.

There are enough worlds out there that it's more of a ripple effect, I suppose. [ he tucks his hands into his pockets, still looking irritatingly casual despite the heavy conversation. ] I haven't seen my own world, though there have been some from ones like it. [ that gets an easy shrug. ] I would concern yourself more with what will happen if ALASTAIR doesn't succeed.

I'm a seasoned liar, you know, rather good at it, and if ALASTAIR is down the wrong path, they're certainly sincere about it.

[yaomomo]

Mm, because it affects us directly.

[She understands that much, why she should be concerned. However, if the ripple effect affects her world too much, she can't help but be concerned. It's not something she'll push though, because it seems as though it would be a long story and she does think it'll help to read it.]

A seasoned liar? [Her eyebrow arches at that, not dubious, but more confused as to why he'll admit as such.]

Have you lied at any point since we met?

[selfimage]

Why is it ... [ he begins, and then takes a moment to look at his nails. ] That when you admit to be a liar, someone just assumes that you're a compulsive one?

[ then there's a mock dejected, over-exaggerated sigh that sags his shoulders against where he's leaning. it's as if the words she had spoke had created a vacuum, and sucked all the whimsy from him. ]

No, I don't have much of a reason to lie. I am notorious for it, though.

[yaomomo]

Perhaps, largely, because it brings into question: Why let someone know you're a liar in the first place?

[She doesn't seem bothered by that, more amused than anything, but then tries to be sympathetic of his plight. Whether or not she succeeds is irrelevant, since he does seem to spring back on his own.]

Mm, then I'll take your word for it. It does seem to be in quite a predicament, though I don't know how accurate that assessment is when I'm not sure how new recruits are normally introduced here.

[selfimage]

Because it's in the reputation. Why deny it?

[ so why lie about lying? if there were those that were going to warn against him anyway, he may as well beat them to them to the punch.d.

he dismisses it with a casual wave of his hand. ]

This is better than the normal blah blah blah of HR.

[ hey, he can peg himself as a liar and still pull the trust me thing. ]

[yaomomo]

I would've preferred it, if only for a less troublesome appearance.

[Because. Unicorns. Either way, she seems less troubled by a liar status, probably because she doubts he'll be conning her anytime soon.]

An honest liar is an oxymoron, but I'll take it. Better from you than someone else.

[selfimage]

You're taking this far too objectively—[ he fixes her with a crooked smile. ]—not every liar lies all the time, and anyone who claims themselves entirely honest is also a liar.

[ he sounds less accusing than he does curious. ]

Do you miss the grays a lot?

[yaomomo]

Would you prefer me to simply consider a liar as incapable of honesty.

[She's looking at him with the same amount of curiosity, maybe a little cautious, trying to decide if she's being tested or not. She knows she tends to overthink, and she's been told it's her weakness, but...]

I just prefer to focus on what is more important. The details of whether or not I can trust you isn't relevant right now, is it?

[selfimage]

I don't think one or the other are your only options.

[ smooth and easy, a brow raised at the alternative. either way, it doesn't seem to bother him whether or not she believes him a liar or not (as it doesn't bother him if most seem to think of him as a liar). ]

No, it's not. Of course, you can see whatever you like for yourself. You don't have to take my word for it, of course.

[yaomomo]

[What a confusing man. That's her conclusion, even if she ponders whether or not to follow this line of logic. It seems best to nip it in the bud, lest they go in circles.]

... Could you tell me more about the tasks they've done here? At least a brief overview of previous missions might help gain a better idea of what to expect.

[selfimage]

[ certainly not a straight-forward person, if anything. there are wide lines between one option and the other, and Loki prides himself on being able to see it.

for a moment, he considers her. ]

Each mission is different, given a goal by a program created by someone to calculate the amount of energy in the universe, and how to save more. It's not done with any moral standard, sometimes the options given are death, sometimes caring for squishy alien babies—whatever's decided is our choice to pursue, with consequences, of course.

Knock the domino you think is best.

[ he says, as if it's so easy. ]

[yaomomo]

[... Well, that was weird.]

And these missions affect everyone?

[It's an odd pair to compare, at the very least, in her mind. However, not the oddest on their own, but as a whole. After all, even heroes have a variety of tasks they specialize in, so this seems...]

Isn't it better to assign certain people to certain tasks instead? And as for the gravity... [She doesn't like the idea of ever choosing something's life or death, so the idea bothers her.]

[selfimage]

Everyone everyone.

They take it upon themselves to transfer who they see fit.

[ it gets a shrug from him.

there were worst choices to make, destroying the goddesses in Nalawi had been one of them that had had weight. there was Michel in Chantes, the crazy revolutionary, who knew that something had to change. then there was Anwick, that was destroyed by a series of events that they had made certain came to pass. ]

[yaomomo]

It just seems inefficient, is how I see it. Although I suppose for some, real life experience is as good as training.

[But not having the basics of rescue, not having a single protocol, and simply letting everyone loose like this with differing values... It sounded chaotic.

Perhaps he had a point though. If they've managed to work with the system for as long as they have, it probably means something is working-- however, it might also mean that they were lucky. She can't really tell, not without experiencing it first but...]

I suppose I'll have to see it for myself.

[selfimage]

Perspective is the key here. You're a human, aren't you? Perspective from those who oversee the entire timeline may have a different idea of efficiency.

[ he says it easily, almost dismissively. ]

You're no longer just among mortals and humans anymore. I'd suggest doing some observance before making assumptions, you never know what you may find.

Think of it like ... ah—an opportunity.

[yaomomo]

Oh, believe me, I plan to.

[Perspective, huh? She really needs to step up her game, even if she is disoriented.]

... Thank you for letting me know these things, Mr. Loki. I do appreciate what you've offered to me.

[selfimage]

As you will.

[ it was his duty or something like that. some part of him is surprised that he could help, and another part sated by his contribution. ]

Means of communication are still nerfed, so you have a chance to be uninterrupted while everyone scrambles to understand one another.

[yaomomo]

Then, if it's all right, could you lead me to a library or a record room, just so I can review the cases previous to this.

[They do have such things here, right? After all, without a log of everything, it'll be difficult to learn from previous mistakes.]

[selfimage]

As you will—you can try them out for yourself, too.

[ while he doesn't look entirely motivated to leave, he moves eventually, beckoning for her to follow. ]

[yaomomo]

Thank you. I appreciate the assist.

[Anyway, as soon as he leaves her with the records, he's free of her for the rest of... however long it is before she seeks him out, so it wasn't too bad of a trade-off she thinks. It must be difficult dealing with newbies here.]