forcevisions: (who quit too late)
actual shounen hero ([personal profile] forcevisions) wrote in [community profile] futurology2016-11-07 08:00 pm

video. UN: JAKKU

[ Everyone's camping. That's fun, isn't it? Well, before people get ahead of themselves, there's some more news that's waiting. Following Keith and Rey's conversation—and Keith being set right about their shared misconceptions thanks to some clarifications from ALASTAIR—they've finally regrouped enough for … this. If you've ever wondered how good Keith is at sharing information, it's probably along the lines of "not good."

So, this should be good, basically. (At least he has Rey to back him up.)

The two of them are sitting side by side on the outskirts of camp so that they can make their announcement undisturbed. Keith's sporting a warmer jacket and Rey was all but swallowed in the hood of her ALASTAIR uniform, which fit ill now in the light of the doubts that the holodisc shed on them.

After a beat of them … sitting there, Keith awkwardly clears his throat in what sounds like an ineffectual manner: ]


Uh, hey. We have something to tell you all today. [ A beat. Another beat. He glances toward Rey, as if he suddenly feels like she's the one who should talk.

While Rey clearly doesn’t appreciate the hand-off, her shoulders rustling as she composes herself, she can’t deny the responsibility. She directs her gaze towards him for a moment, wrestling with something, before she relents. ]


I made a mistake. [ It seems the simplest place to start when most of them had seen precisely what happened with the Reverend. ] We need to make sure that none of you repeat it. When I killed … [ She can’t muster that admission, not properly, not in this context. So she starts again. ] When the Reverend died, something came out of him. Some kind of parasite.

[ Right, he knows Rey's body language enough to realize where he should probably help. If if were anyone else, that might not be the case, but somehow, they've become friends. It's an odd thing for him, and when she finishes speaking, he preps himself. All right, he can do this. He can do this. ]

The parasite is called the Taraxa. I didn't get a chance to look at a holodisc I found until after the fighting war over, and um, I'm sorry for not coming forward sooner. We wanted to check back with ALASTAIR first. [ He pauses here, but briefly. ]

Anyway, the Taraxa are supposed to be a peaceful group now. They've worked with ALASTAIR via some temporary hosts as spies, but obviously, none of us would call the Deemers peaceful. Rey and I don't know what happened, or if these are some … special branch that decided to go rogue. I don't know. But I think we've got a bigger mess to deal with here than just the mines and mining. [ He offers Rey a brief glance. Keith can't even begin to guess what the Deemers are really doing. He can't. But between the fires and disappearances, he figures they can't just ignore this. ]

They’re also supposed to have hosts that they build instead of steal, but that’s obviously not the case. It’s possible but dangerous to communicate with them because they follow a hivemind they consider their Mother, which is red instead of ... [ Grimly, she raises the dessicated carcass of the beige slug she’d evinced from the Reverend’s corpse. It seemed an odd thing, now, to hold onto it like some kind of trophy, but she hadn’t been ready to let it go, as if holding onto the horror of what she had done. ] Though there’s no clear way to tell when you’re dealing with a Mother while she’s in a host, as far as I can tell.

Until we know more, travel in pairs, and try to avoid lethal force; the Deemers aren’t acting of their own free will.


Or … their hosts aren't, anyway. I guess it's really the same thing, huh? Most importantly, if you have a way of scanning people's brains, let us know. It wasn't clear in the file how to stop them exactly, but heat and salt seem like our best bets. Uh, death and decapitation work, too, but I think we're gonna try to avoid that from now on.

[ Sulky silence quieted Rey, on that note, and she ended the transmission abruptly. ]

[ ooc; if it isn't clear, Rey and Keith. ]
fateality: (what the frick frack)

audio; un: cardmaster

[personal profile] fateality 2016-11-08 03:10 am (UTC)(link)
[Well, cowboy planet is steadily becoming less endearing as time goes on. It really does lead to the question of how many of them have been enslaved. Uncomfortable, really.

Them's the brakes.]


Between this and the sorry reports about the planet, this is lookin' a tad grim.

[Uncomfortably, Twisted Fate adds:]

I can't scan a person's brain, but there might be a few ways to tell if someone's... got bad intentions for us.
respired: and hope that i never stop watching you (know that i watch everything you do)

video; un: deathweaver

[personal profile] respired 2016-11-08 03:11 am (UTC)(link)
[ Well, he was pinged pretty hard by this. He thinks of all the Deemers he killed during the ambush, and though he doesn't regret it (they killed Riza), this new information changes his perspective considerably.

The lilting, haunted echo of his voice is soft, but firm; cold. ]


If the Qorral are enslaved by this species, I would see them freed.

[ A beat. He well knows from his own experiences that such a thing is far easier said than done. ]

If it's possible to do so.
predomination: bitches don't know shit about my theme music. (âš› [hacker voice] I'M IN)

[personal profile] predomination 2016-11-08 03:15 am (UTC)(link)
[and now Urahara with some uplifting questions:]

I don't suppose you know how likely it would be to extract one alive without killing the host?
dbag: (Default)

video | un: RHY5-W1NZ

[personal profile] dbag 2016-11-08 03:19 am (UTC)(link)
[ Hesitantly raising his hand: ]

Hi. Iiii can scan stuff.

text | un: Sasaki

[personal profile] ex_adept136 2016-11-08 03:21 am (UTC)(link)
[Haise might be able to smell the difference, but given the circumstances...he doubts it's reliable enough to count on. Maybe if it was someone he knew, but- he doesn't even want to consider that possibility]

That explains why they only reacted to head-blows.

Thank you both for making us aware of this. With this information, it seems like the next course of action is finding a way to stop these Taraxa. If the Redeemers aren't in control of their own actions, we can't ignore that.
Edited 2016-11-08 03:28 (UTC)
headlining: (i guess every superhero)

audio ; un: unknownrealms

[personal profile] headlining 2016-11-08 03:26 am (UTC)(link)
[Interesting. It's definitely a very intriguing story, but Keats has some questions.]

Can these parasites be reasoned with? Perhaps there's some desperate reason they've taken up hosts from an existing population. Maybe they feel threatened.
pummelling: (65)

video; un: white_lotus

[personal profile] pummelling 2016-11-08 03:28 am (UTC)(link)
[Jin's mind is already made up.]

How do you get them out of people's heads? We can't kill any more Deemers-- not now that we know they're being controlled by the Taraxa.
strictdiscipline: (004)

text; un. hawkeye

[personal profile] strictdiscipline 2016-11-08 03:28 am (UTC)(link)
I don't suppose either of you know who the 'Mother' is here, or how to recognize her.

[It's too much to ask, certainly, but if she's the one in charge, she's the one they need to find.]
whatshimadayou: (cuz fuck you)

audio; un: okami

[personal profile] whatshimadayou 2016-11-08 03:30 am (UTC)(link)
Even if we were to avoid lethal force, how do you propose we remove these Taraxa? Unless ALASTAIR saw fit to share such information.
cachemoney: (pic#10548732)

video; un: fiona

[personal profile] cachemoney 2016-11-08 03:32 am (UTC)(link)
Any chance you can let us read the disc ourselves instead of just giving a summary? [Because frankly, she doesn't trust anyone not to give an unbiased opinion instead of the facts.]
Edited 2016-11-08 03:46 (UTC)
achaean: (past the midnight hour)

video

[personal profile] achaean 2016-11-08 03:33 am (UTC)(link)
If indeed they are a parasitic creature, perhaps we could build for them a more desirable host, one that is easier for our troops to manage and control. The stolen hosts are most probably not a choice of utility, but rather of convenience.
araigneedusoir: See I'm not the only one (Leucauge venusta)

audio; un: Evening Spider

[personal profile] araigneedusoir 2016-11-08 03:54 am (UTC)(link)
[More creepy crawlies, great. Thankfully what she thinks and what she says are two very different things.]

Good to know. [There's a brief pause, followed by a thoughtful exhale.] I do hope you can find someway to both find and remove these...Taraxa.
viscontree: (then lindow comes up to you and hes all)

audio; username: julius

[personal profile] viscontree 2016-11-08 04:01 am (UTC)(link)
We have to ensure that they don't endanger anyone. I'll do my best to keep our members safe.

What kind of precautions should we take? Is it safe to approach them directly?

[What should he expect from these things? Well, killing's always an option if it come to that.]
selfimage: — ɢᴀʀʙᴇᴛᴛ — (Like a rocket man.)

AUDIO. UN: LOKI

[personal profile] selfimage 2016-11-08 04:07 am (UTC)(link)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers, is it? A classic.

[ a sigh slips through his lips. ]

Have we any idea if this piece connects to the other ALASTAIR reports? The one about the whole core business.
twinpeak: (pic#9586495)

video; un: G.SLQHV

[personal profile] twinpeak 2016-11-08 04:24 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, ew.

[ That thing was in SOMEONE'S BRAIN??? Dipper has to suppress a shudder over the thought. ]

So... what's the objective now? Hope we can find a way to find and get rid of this mother thing? Is freeing the Deemers even an option at this point?
friendlykillingmachine: (Default)

video; un: MANDROID

[personal profile] friendlykillingmachine 2016-11-08 04:41 am (UTC)(link)
So that would mean it's the Taraxa that are trying to dig all the way to Q-65's core for salvation. Do you know anything else about them? Like if there's something they need to survive?
moneyballer: by <lj user="dorkwithamask"> (92)

video; un: I CAN B UR DADDY

[personal profile] moneyballer 2016-11-08 05:33 am (UTC)(link)
Gross.
daimeinashi: (pic#8421141)

video;

[personal profile] daimeinashi 2016-11-08 05:44 am (UTC)(link)
Regardless of what the Deemers' intentions might or might not have originally been, the Taraxa are a direct threat now, one that has been willing to use lethal force.

Attempting to spare the Deemers could compromise us all.
onethousen: (listen | to what you're saying)

text | un:chihiro

[personal profile] onethousen 2016-11-08 08:36 am (UTC)(link)
Can we help keep the Qorral who haven't been taken like this safe?

[ this. this is why the people who left never came back. this is why those graves by the church sat untended. it's a horrifying, total realisation for her, and her mind can only frame it that way, frame it against what the aliens in aliens are asking for. are... what? she doesn't get it. ]

Are these Taxara, Taraxara, Tar... slugs after whatever ALASTAIR talked about from really long ago? The thing inside this world? I can't imagine they want the same thing the Qorral say they want. The ones still in town, I mean.
riastraid: (119)

audio | un:lancer

[personal profile] riastraid 2016-11-08 08:45 am (UTC)(link)
Nice finds. But what's stopping them from taking new hosts? Like, say... us. Or the townsfolk. Because if the answer's 'nothing', seems like all the more reason to take 'em down before they enslave anybody else.

[ Or somehow move along their apparent plot for temporal destruction, etc. Either way, his tone is even-keeled—not a man that sounds moved to non-violence. The Reverend's death might be tragic, but it hardly seemed a mistake. ]
Edited 2016-11-08 09:12 (UTC)
apoptotic: (038)

( video | un: skywalker )

[personal profile] apoptotic 2016-11-08 11:18 am (UTC)(link)
[ to the point: ] I've encountered brain worms before.

[ it was a fun time losing his shit because his padawan was trapped with them let him tell you. actually, don't. ]

They slip in through the nose. We were able to remove those that infected our men without hurting the host.

[ a little pause. these aren't geonosian brain worms. they lack the same weaknesses. but leaving a portion of the qorral infected isn't an option. ]

Once we've captured one, we can test exactly how to get them out. I can set out with one, two others max and return soon. [ spoken not so much as a suggestion, but as statement. he's going to catch a deemer ok anakin. ]
competing: (Default)

video | username: xXx_trueblue_xXx

[personal profile] competing 2016-11-08 11:55 am (UTC)(link)
[ it all seems pretty cut and dry to lance. they're supposed to be fixing this timeline, right? defending this universe? not only do they now have an actual Bad Guy to direct their attention to, they have some possible ways to defeat them! why all the gloomy faces??? ]

Alright, hear me out—

[ the four worst words to ever possibly come out of lance's mouth. ]

—we sneak into their base incognito-style, right? Dust up our skin, maybe, put on some fancy hats, talk reeeeeal sloooow and chaaaaarming-like. We get in, see if we can pull some information outta somebody, chat them up by the watercooler all, 'Hey, Fred, how's your bodysnatching going? Mondays, amirite!' then when they least expect it — BAM! — we hit them with some salt bombs and then get the heck outta dodge!

[ eh? EH??? ]
perma_banned: (but making a good case for it)

video; username: baaaan

[personal profile] perma_banned 2016-11-08 12:01 pm (UTC)(link)
Got it. Now, we're dealin' with something like a demon.

[He wasn't stupid enough to call them demons but when something acted like, smelled like and probably was one--]

I can probably help remove the damned things without killing people. Really need to work on finding somebody who can hear thoughts, though.
slushfund: it is a very good bad thing (pic#9173584)

TEXT, UN: BATSHIT

[personal profile] slushfund 2016-11-08 12:52 pm (UTC)(link)
ALASTAIR must've pissed the Taraxa off, or made promises they couldn't keep.
Lol, wouldn't be surprised if one of them escaped a year ago and came out here to finish the core mining job.
If they've got a vendetta against our bosses, the best way to fuck with 'em is to hit 'em right in the timeline.

Really anything worked out right now is gonna be conspiracy theory at best.
heritors: "i believe the woman you want is me!" (( troubled ) kinda troubled)

audio | un: lucina

[personal profile] heritors 2016-11-08 02:21 pm (UTC)(link)
Are there any signs that could point to whether or not someone has been enslaved? [ First thing's first. If these Taraxa were built for infiltration, despite how the Deemers were acting... It's always a possibility.

After a moment's pause, she also adds, quietly, almost hesitant: ]
And... as for the Deemers — do we have an indication as to who wanted to dig to the planet's core? The Deemers, or the Taraxa?

Or is this information we have yet to gather?

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