futurology | video; un: urahara | we must have died alone a long, long time ago...

[are we all ready to start roughing things up? springing into action for revenge, information, SCIENCE™, or otherwise?

well hold your horses, because Urahara has something to say.]

Evening, everyone~

I know we're all ready to start taking this seriously- or more seriously, in some cases- but before anyone sets out, I have one bit of information to share that might bring some clarity on how much of a mess we're really in.

[he holds up his holodisc fragments- all three of them] Jin-san and his magitek-stealing friend gave us the opportunity to share what we've found on all these scattered pieces, so I won't waste anyone's time by rehashing what's already been said and debated over. The thing is.. This one's complete now, and I believe it speaks for itself.

[and he plays it, snapping his fan open as the audio crackling to life:]

Findings indicate a temporal crystal deep within the planet's core, that when pierced will bring about the certain destruction of this section of the Timeline. For the sake of the continued existence of all life in this timeline, ALASTAIR must keep the core of this planet from being breached.

[it ends and Urahara makes a sound of mock-disapproval] Well, that doesn't sound good, now does it? [he snaps his fan closed for dramatic effect. because he's dramatic.] Now some of these fragments- one of mine, included- specifically mentioned a group known as Zymandis, who were dropped in both the Taraxa file and the transcript with Lloyd-san. So we can only assume, given what we know from back then and what we know now, that all of this seems to be Zymandis finishing whatever it started years before- specifically, destruction of this part of the Timeline by using the Qorral's equipment and knowledge to their advantage.

So my question is this... [and his voice drops an octave] Did anyone know of Zymandis before we arrived here? I'm curious if there's more to the story, and exactly how much and what we should be asking our Taraxa friends once we find them.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ah? Does it? [ there's a moment where he sounds a little unsurprised on the verge of disinterest. ] While ALASTAIR certainly has its secrets, I have no reason to doubt their sincerity. I'd not call it an oversight as much as an act of omission, bu-ut ...

[ hm, how to put this? ]

Desperate times, desperate measures, I suppose.

I'm certainly not against finding our for ourselves.

I don't think for a second it was malicious. I'm sure they had their reasons.

[no he knows they did. He knows because this is exactly what he'd do in their situation. He understands their methods, because they're his. The frustration comes from being the pawn and not the player for once. He can understand it, and he knows he can't (and won't) try to change it, but he doesn't have to like it.

Or be complacent.] We~ll since we're going to have targets painted on our backs anyway, I'd like to get to know the people who want to kill me.

[ Loki wonders about the killing part, as depending on the timeline, it might not even make a difference. ]

Or at least, who'd like to recruit you. They did sway the Taraxa, after all; there are options. The timeline is a currently an unstable thing, and controlling which way it presents itself could bring an interesting result depending on who's hands it falls into.

... If they have hands, of course.

[ a pause. ]

So, what are you suggesting?

That's precisely why I think ALASTAIR kept us in the dark. So long as they remain the only players, we're not tempted to take another route. This timeline business can't possibly be incentive enough for everyone.

[he smiles slyly.] It works for me, however, so Zymandis doesn't have that in their favor.

[which edges entirely past his usual faux humility. Having just sealed a man with severe delusions of grandeur who thought eliminating keystones that hold the world together, he doesn't have boundless patients for anyone doing similar.]

Talk to the Taraxa once we've managed to capture them. They may only know what they were told, but any little bit of information is better than what we have. Once we're back in Oska, we can do our own research, but if there's a chance information can come from agents, themselves....

Edited 2016-11-19 17:19 (UTC)

[ while Loki doesn't sound entirely convinced, he does sound partially intrigued. ]

If that's the case, then whom on ALASTAIR would be hiding it? Lloyd gave it freely. The initial lost records that we were meant to receive, depended on a successful mission. That's rather sloppy on their behalf.

[ it had been five missions that Loki had been snooping around: trying to break into the Mechanical Room, rolling his eyes at the simplicity of timeline.exe, and trying to count what was coincidence, and what was calculated. ]

If there's compartmentalization, I'd rather have specifics rather than a vague idea of exactly who is holding what from us.

Though a good interrogation wouldn't hurt. Will there be dinner and drinks?

Maybe the cats. They're fickle.

[he's 75% kidding, but they would be his first guess on any other day.] The problem isn't so much that Lloyd-san didn't put up a fight about the information so much as he gave exactly enough to satisfy someone with enough to worry about.

[one might even say he intentionally gave Keith so much information as to overwhelm and distract him from digging too far. Again, it's the sort of misdirection tactic he excels at. He wouldn't rule it out.]

But that's an issue once we're back on Oska, isn't it? For now, we have some wining and dining to do with the Taraxa.

[or whining and dying, amirite.]

That's ... reaching. [ he sounds resigned. Keith didn't exactly follow up in that way. for someone who plays with words, "not enough" is subjective in terms of intention. ] But I'll humor you.

[ this Zymandis may have something to do with the Mechanical Room lockdown, and he hasn't exactly given up his ambitions there, not yet. ]

I suppose that means that it's time to do some downright dirty kidnapping.

Maybe. I don't have your experience- just my own- and it's hard not to wonder if an angle is being played here.

[but... he laughs it off, making it seem more like a joke than a habit of keeping himself always "on" tactically.] But I have to be prepared for anything- that's just how I work. For now, however, figuring out how best to convince our new friends to chat is the priority. Anakin-san was kind enough to invite me along with him~

It will go a lot smoother with a bigger group.

Ah, Anakin! We're in for good decisions all around.

[ see, here he is, inviting himself. ]

It's not B & E, but it'll have to do.

[he was inviting you to invite yourself so thumbs up.]

I'm sure we'll manage to keep it entertaining.

video; un: urahara | we must have died alone a long, long time ago...

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject