The Ozymandias's "conference room" has been transformed from a former staging area, with the addition of a few chairs, and the removal of the wall-mounted weapons racks (relocated to the main armory). It's a sturdy chamber, with three methods of egress (forward exit, rear exit, and top hatch), and all three can be secured as need be.
Unseen to the normal eye, a little dragon hides near the forward doorway, just around the corner, surreptitiously peeking inside - and guarding the access up to the forward areas (such as the bridge and captain's cabin). On the other side, an unseen fox is similarly obscured from sight, guarding the aft exit.
Randall escorts the General in, still dressed in his flamboyant pirate captain's outfit - it goes well with the Imperial captain's cap. "General, please be seated."
Jason is sitting on the far end of the table. The danger of the situation is not lost on him; he well knows the General could break him in two easily. Beneath the table, his right leg twitches nervously as he waits for Randall to explain the situation.
The general takes a moment to survey the room and its contents, and then takes a seat in one of the bolted-down chairs, rolling it slightly back in its framework (it has a clever adjusting mechanism that compensates for the fact that it can't actually be pushed back from the table while bolted in place). He looks to Captain Randall, attentive, but by no means at ease.
"We've discussed the matter between us, and we believe that your presence is no mere coincidence - you may very well be important to the completion of our mission. However, as I've said, simply knowing of the mission will greatly complicate your life." Randall pauses, leaning forward on the table. "Are you ready to have your life changed?"
Holly sits to the General's left, opposite Randall, and keeps her hands folded on the table to show that she's not about to conjure anything. She watches the General's face closely for signs of stress.
The general raises an eyebrow at this, and makes an unconvincing chuckle. "Whatever it is, after this much preamble, I expect it should be impressive. But do go on - Change is inevitable; I think we have all come to realize that much. If the Empire cannot adapt, it is doomed to die."
"The Empire will go on until the end of the universe," Holly says with confidence.
"Well said, General. Change is at the very heart of the mission. The first, and most important, thing that you need to know is that there are powerful forces that rule this universe, but also shroud their existence from those that live within it. You are one of the very few we know of who has pierced this veil, who has seen through to its underlying workings. The trick with the books - one example of these forces at work, being oh so very helpful to our sensed needs." Randall smiles a bit. "But the fact that you can see through the veil, that itself may prejudice these forces into trying to suppress your very existence."
Jason suddenly has an urge to kick Holly as such a loaded statement.
The general nods, with a serious expression on his face; it seems that whatever has been said so far hasn't shocked him yet, or at least he's still withholding judgement.
"The second thing is that there are beings not entirely of this universe. They are called 'Guests' by these forces, or sometimes 'Players'. You encountered one of these, when he was performing an ineffectual attempt at stealth. Had the veil been working as intended, it would have worked, and you might very well have been assassinated," Randall says direly.
"Heh. May as well just say the most common element in the universes is stupidity, given how badly the player was acting his role," Jason can't help but think. He keeps his expression neutral and his link to RIU open and at the forefront of his mind.
Holly doesn't add anything, since Randall seems to be doing well and the General hasn't asked any questions yet.
Despite the oddity of his phrasing - and the oddity of what he's trying to explain - Randall seems to be coming across as remarkably earnest and confident - or, at least, that looks like how the general is taking it. The general's eyebrow raises here or furrows there as he listens, but it's nonetheless hard to read his mind just by looking. In any case, he's still attentive and listening. Nobody has gone mad yet, and he doesn't flinch at mention of Players or Guests; apparently this hasn't triggered any "NPC Protocols" to interfere with his behavior. Not yet, anyway.
Randall takes a breath. "General, these Players come from a universe outside this one. To them, this universe is a game. You are a pawn in the game, who has rebelled against the invisible lines that guide its existence." He adds in a parenthetical aside, "I don't intend to demean you by comparing you to a pawn, General, but rather, to illustrate the way that these forces manipulate your life."
"RIU, be ready for anything. This could go really bad," Jason instructs his dragon. He continues to watch the General intently.
Holly watches the General, looking for signs of an Epiphany about the 'zombies'.
The general frowns deeply, but then nods curtly. He coughs a bit to clear his throat, a mannerism that seems a subconscious warning that he's about to speak. "I'm familiar with philosophy, Captain Randall, insofar as the talk about forces of Light and Shadow battling over our universe. The Links of the Sunward Shards often phrase conflicts in these terms, thinking themselves vassals of the force of the Light, and supposing that those in the Outward Regions are conveniently in the thrall of the Shadow. What you suggest sounds very much like the teachings of Sage Apocalyptos - his teaching that Light and Shadow, unchecked, would equally enslave us. It is for this reason that Sorcery and Science are equally valued by the Empire - forces that are beholden neither to Light nor Shadow, but may well exploit resources from either as befits the situation."
Randall looks a bit bemused at the General's discursion, but nods.
Jason, for his part, remains silent, nodding to indicate continue as well. Boy is his leg twitching under the table, though!
"Nonetheless," the general says, "I must admit that what I have seen would force me to reinterpret the way I took such philosophy. If mortal lives were guided by Light or Shadow or other unseen forces, it was always in some intangible sense - something that could just as easily be explained away as mere luck or happenstance, or I've sometimes heard of Links using the term of 'karma.' But this ... this is far more ..." He pauses a moment, furrowing his brow. "I want to say literal, though that seems not quite the right word. No, it's much more crude than I ever imagined, if this is the case. But - now this is where I am wondering and am genuinely worried: Is this a new development? Or are you suggesting that this has been going on all along, and we simply haven't realized it until now? How long have we been plagued by these puppets ... these 'zombies' among us? And these 'players'?"
"He's rather sharp for a simulation, Jason can't help but think. "I wonder how he'll react to being told ... forever."
Randall shakes his head. "The veil, General. As I have said, the forces at work in the universe conceal this information from your mind, and from all others living here. To you, this is new. But it has been going on for literally as long as the universe itself."
"It's not exactly a plague," Holly explains. "It's the natural state for the natives of this reality. The powers that be granted you the self-awareness to escape it, General."
The general, at this, looks faintly ill. His hand shakes a bit as he raises it and curls it to rest his chin upon as he strikes a thoughtful position - or merely braces himself against the sturdy table, as if he might be risking a fall into some unseen void if not for some physical support. "I was hoping it would not be that," he says. "But as we were talking in the hall - as you kept making those odd statements ... I think you were trying to prepare me for this. I think I suspected something of it even before now." He pushes back from the table, leaning back in his chair, sighing deeply. "I don't even know where to begin. How does one fight such a pervasive enemy? What does this say for all we have ever believed and stood for? How do ... how did you take this news, Captain?" He turns to look squarely at Randall. "What did you think - what did you do - when you had ... when you had reality as you knew it, ripped out from underneath you?"
The general seems unnaturally calm in the face of such a revelation. Perhaps Captain Randall is even more persuasive to "VNPCs" than he is to his fellows (and Randall seems to have a knack for sounding confident, competent and earnest anyway). Or perhaps the full force of the implications haven't yet hit the general, even if on some level he is logically able to grasp the edge of this new reality.
"I was rather surprised," Randall says blandly, thinking of the moment that he realized he was in an alternate version of North Bend. "But my first thought was to the protection of innocent lives." He leans forward. "Consider this, General, if you were to be persuaded that you were dreaming, would you take it as an excuse to commit acts you would never have thought of in waking? A man who needs someone watching over his shoulders in order to behave is not truly a man of principles."
The general blurts out a nervous but seemingly genuine chuckle. "Well said, Captain Randall. Well said. What if all life is an illusion? But then nonetheless, it is the life we have. The world before the Sundering - perhaps that was but a dream - but it matters little since we can never go back there again. This is our world. These are our lives. If the Empire is but a dream - then at least it is our dream."
"It wasn't easy to come to grips with, but having a goal helps," Holly offers, and even reaches over to pat the General's hand. "This happened to you for a reason, General. You are critical to the survival of this reality, somehow."
"For me, well, I think I reacted as many would. Shocked and angry. Confused and lost," Jason adds to the conversation, "But when it comes down to it, what choice do we have now that we're here other than to press forward and try to understand more of what is going on and deal with it? We make due with what we can and press on. Anything else is just admitting defeat." He also casts Holly a hard look before adding, "And what the mage says we believe is true. Some clues have indicated that you are somehow special to this."
"And that we can speak of at a later time," Jason adds, "Please do not overwhelm him with too much information."
The general seems taken aback at Holly's gesture, but has the good grace not to respond by yanking his hand away or anything of the sort, and he casts a querying look to Jason, but he doesn't press further on that. Instead, he looks to Captain Randall. "I can only assume you've put much thought into the next course of action, then. I cannot say I am comfortable with this state of affairs - nor that I fully understand it - but I trust that you have some sort of plan in mind. I am eager to hear of it."
Randall smiles wryly. He's still clinging to the belief that we are of the Empire, he thinks, not sure how to reshape that belief just yet. "To bring this forward, let's talk about change," he says. "In the natural state of things, so long as the existence of these forces was concealed from those who live within this universe - the White, the Grey, the Black - this game might well continue indefinitely. But there is someone outside this universe, who decided that he could profit by disturbing the balance."
The general considers this solemnly. "This new 'player', so to speak - is he an ally, then, or are we merely benefiting by chance from his interference with the status quo?"
Catching something out of the corner of her eye, Holly stares through one of the portholes. "Uh.. did anyone just see something like a stealthed person leap past the window?" she asks. "And I mean leap, as in tall-buildings-in-a-single-bound leap."
"He's no ally," Jason mutters to himself. His head swivels to look to Holly and he almost growls, "Sasha."
"In the normal course of things, there is no way to cross over from this universe to the outer one," Randall explains. "But this person, Blake Forester, though he may go by other names, found that by making parts of both universes similiar, he could bridge the gap between them. We believe that he may have the ability to seize control over Empire forces--"
The captain gets up to look outside the window. "Are we on course, Jason?"
"We were last I checked. I would have to return to the bridge to verify," Jason answers and stands. He heads towards the exit leading to the bridge.
"No, I just wanted to make sure we weren't still in dock," Randall says. "But it might profit us to check the magic detector."
"Did Sasha participate in Blake's last attack, Randall?" Holly asks as she gets up and makes for the bridge as well.
The general, too deep within his thoughts to be distracted by sightings of leaping individuals, muses, "So, this Forester must be a mortal - an alchemist or a sorcerer, perhaps? Or an inventor." Seeing everyone else in motion, however, he rises from his chair at last.
"Inventor is close enough," Holly comments to the General in passing.
Randall says to Holly, "I saw a faint dot that vanished. She might have been there, then split up once she saw the spotlight."
The sorceress heads right for the magic detector, while saying, "Orb, can you scan for intruders?"
RIU is already on the bridge, curling up around the orb pedestal ... not that anyone can actually see him, that is, aside from a telltale shimmering for those who are familiar with his ways. The forward shields are up, conveying a view of the aether plane, as the Ozymandias cuts its way through. Off to the port side, the cluttered expanse of Shipwreck stretches out a considerable distance; at the ship's current pace, it could take a full day just to reach the far end (but going any faster without someone at the helm would be most unwise, what with the Storm brewing so close at hand - dominating the field of vision to starboard).
Randall explains to the General, "Sasha is one of Blake's companions, someone from the outer universe who was brought into this universe. We think she's been brainwashed into serving his will. She's a Link with an Avatar with powers of stealth."
The detector shows a few faint points of Light, somewhere within Shipwreck - there might very well be some VPCs somewhere within the expanse, though the resolution is weak enough and the points are hazy (perhaps because of intervening obstacles) that it's unclear exactly how many individuals might be represented. However, these are far within the complex - not a bunch of Light individuals knocking on the hull, so to speak.
Jason moves to the ship controls and inserts his gauntleted hand, then proceeds to check over the ship's course and speed. "Nothing obvious yet," he comments absently to the others.
"Inari," Holly says, addressing the unseen fox. "You've dealt with Sasha before. If this is her, what sort of tactics should we expect - and weaknesses. I would expect her to be over-confident, myself."
The General frowns. "Well, if she's a Link, she'll have a rough time of it. Continuous powers are a strong drain on energy - and this far out from the Sunward Shards, any Link will have considerable trouble recovering Light energy."
The 'pirate captain' examines the detector, brows furrowing in concentration. "Hmmm. Then why don't we welcome her in and have a nice little chat?" he suggests to the others.
A disembodied voice echoes around the chamber, defying easy pinpointing - but recognizable as Inari's: "Sasha and Moonbeam both have considerable Stealth, making them difficult to see by the unaided eye, even without use of magic - but Moonbeam furthermore has the power of Invisibility. Moonbeam is of the rare Element of Moon - something that grants them combined powers usually found only among creatures of Shadow." There is a pause, and then she adds, "She likes to work alone, except that she also likes for someone else to be able to witness her exploits when it's all over with."
"Element of Moon?" the General repeats, incredulously. "I've never heard of such a thing. What element opposes it?"
"I don't think inviting her to talk is a good idea," Jason remarks, "But you're the captain."
"Of the two, who has the strongest agility?" Holly asks. To the General, she says, "They can have abilities outside of those normally reserved for Links, just as I'm able to use magic that Players can't."
Randall points out reasonably, "For the first part, we can't really keep her out anyway, if she wants to get in, and for the second... She is one of the innocent lives I'd like to protect. And if the General is correct that being out here is a drain on her resources, I'd hardly wish to contribute to her demise."
Holly also mutters something about Moon Power being opposed by Tall Guy in a Tuxedo power.
"Moon is an isolated element," Inari explains. "It is not part of any of the recognized relationship chains. It neither trumps nor is trumped. As for the two, Sasha may have supernatural Stealth, but that is her only remarkable power. She is athletic, but has only human abilities; it is Moonbeam who is the greater power, so long as Sasha is able to guide her."
"It's probably Moonbeam then," Holly says. She sits in the magic circle and activates it. "We could probably set a trap for her if we can control how she enters the ship."
Jason gets a dangerous idea. He tries to bring up the statistics control again, just on his 'terminal'. "I have an idea, then. You say as long as she is able to control her? Well, I wonder if I can disrupt their link," he comments darkly.
The General looks at the detector, but doesn't seem to spy anything anyone else hasn't already discovered. "How strong is the Link? How many Swords or Books?"
The orb warms up, as RIU channels through it.
"What are the chances that Sasha and Moonbeam have merged, like you and Akiko have?" Holly asks the invisible Inari.
Inari says, "I don't even want to entertain that possibility. As for ranking, none of Blake's group wear obvious pendants - at least, not in this iteration. But I am fairly sure Moonbeam's at least a Fierce, in her Fourth Light. I don't know how powerful Sasha herself is, but their Guardians are as powerful as they've ever been. If Sasha and her Guardian were one, without having to go through a medium, then she can negate any advantages I might give you."
"She could pierce your illusions?" Holly asks. "If we don't act like we know she's there, then maybe we can set a trap in the conference room by making it seem like we're all there."
A window pops up near the orb, showing a wireframe model of the ship, slowly rotating - but still presented on the window in two dimensions, rather than a three-dimensional hologram. Some red flags are indicated, pointing at exterior hatches. Blown up, a window displays "Automatic Lockpicking: Success. ERROR: Physics failure. Failed to respond." Several duplicates of the same message overlap each other.
Randall listens to Jason and Holly bemusedly, then smiles wryly. "Well, then. I'm going to greet our guest. Or if you prefer, be bait in a trap. Let's see here." He studies the light signal console, then lights up a series of running lights leading to the hangar. "I'm going to go down to the hangar and open the door there. General, I realize I haven't fully explained our mission, but nevertheless I must ask, whatever it may appear our aims are, will you refrain from lethal actions against Sasha unless it seems there is no alternative?"
"We have a breach. How dare she touch my ship," Jason growls annoyedly at the display. "Don't bother with the hanger, I think she's already inside."
"I could at least buy some time," Inari says. "Moonbeam has heightened senses, and thus has a fair chance to see through my illusions - though I've found ways to distract her. But with Sasha's intellect, I don't know she'd fall for such tricks."
"In point of fact, I think she's attempted to, but your little trick seems to have dissuaded her," Randall says, pointing to the 'Failed to respond.'
"Hold that thought, Randall," Holly says as the break-in is announced. "Inari, is Sasha afraid of anything? Like spiders?"
General Irongrip nods to Captain Randall. "I imagine if we capture this Sasha - we might be able to learn more about her master."
"That's a consideration, yes," the 'pirate captain' says dryly.
"Not to mention that Blake has twisted their minds," Jason notes.
Inari makes a grumbling noise. "If there's anything she's afraid of, it would be humiliation ... or, I imagine, commitment."
Holly momentarily considers an Entangle that would smother Sasha in babies.. "Humiliation?" she asks, getting a grin. "Hmmmm. Maybe it's time for Mr. Tentacles to return.."
Off to port, there is an explosion somewhere in Shipwreck. Pirates go flying (and it's far enough within the Escherian maze of Shipwreck's heart that they go literally in every direction). It's not necessarily something out of the ordinary.
"Conjure up a video camera and a news reporter," Randall suggests as he heads toward the bridge door, but pauses at the flash of light from Shipwreck.
Inari says, "I would not wish tentacles upon anyone. Even I have my limits."
"Well, I don't," Holly notes. "Come here, Randall, and take off your hat.."
Randall raises an eyebrow, but does as bidden.
"What is this about tentacles? Just what have you two been doing?" Jason has to ask. "And should we leave the bridge if you're about to get weird with the captain?"
On the ship's display, more red flags pop up ... at ALL of the external hatches (hangar bay doors included). All of them bear the same "Lockpicking" message - complete with error.
Once more, with some muttering to avoid disturbing the faint of heart, Holly produces a small octopus from her pocket. She then sets it on top of Randall's head and covers it with the hat. "There. When you're close, take your hat off or let it fall off."
Randall feels little suction cups securing themselves against his scalp, through the hair. Although they don't seem strong enough to prevent him from popping the little octopus off, neither does it seem that his hat is going to be falling off accidentally, either.
Randall raises an eyebrow. "I'm a pirate captain with an octopus living under my hat. Very good, thank you, Lady Holly." He adjusts the key-hilt of his cutlass and heads for the door.
"And if it rips off her clothes, I don't need to know about it," Holly tells Randall.
Randall says amusedly, "I believe that would be against my code of conduct as an officer."
"Who knows, she might like it," Holly grumbles. "I'll follow along at a distance, just in case."
Jason casts an eye to the General nervously. "No need to worry, sir, I have the controls well in hand," he remarks quickly. "And there's no way a single invade can get past those two! Well, I hope, anyway." Inwardly, Jason prays that Randall doesn't decide the better part of valor is trying to flirt wit Sasha and woo her to our side. He doesn't need Holly and Sasha trying to kill each other for the remainder of the trip ... that just means more broken things on the ship to fix, afterall.
Hangar Bay
In the rearmost portion of the ship is the hangar bay, which is partitioned off into several "stalls" for use in housing the ship's compliment of ornithopters (flapping winged craft, each seating one pilot), and assorted other cargoes. At present, only four stalls out of ten actually hold ornithopters. One is set aside for an ice wyvern's nest, another holds a tethered modern-day aircar, another holds a tank with glassy ports that cast off a faint blue glow, and the three remaining are empty. Ladders go up and down the walls at various points, and catwalks cross the chamber near the ceiling and floor to reach the hangar bay doors (and the hand-cranked controls) at the aft end.
Randall observes to Holly as they enter the hangar, "The General took the news that he's living in a game rather better than I'd figured. How do you think Sasha wlil take it?"
The ice wyvern pokes her head out of her nest to regard Captain Randall and Sorceress Holly as they reach the viewing platform at the forward end of the hangar. She doesn't seem to be particularly alarmed. The hangar bay doors are securely shut and secured, with shafts disengaged so that the exterior turn-wheels can't actually open the doors from outside (or, technically, so that they can't be opened from the INSIDE, either, until shoved back into place).
"Who cares how she takes it," Holly grumbles. "We won't be letting her out of a cell anyway. Of all of them, she probably came willingly into this arrangement. I'm going to wait just outside the door," she says, and does wait at the hatch connecting the hangar to the corridor.
Randall sighs. "Such lack of trust. Well, just keep an eye out." He alerts Mara mentally to be on watch for Sasha and Moonbeam, then once the corridor door is shut, he goes to disengage the bolts and open the doors.
From her vantage point back behind the door to the hangar, Holly can hear Inari's disembodied voice. "I'm nearby, just in case."
The bolts disengage. The gearshafts are rolled back into place. The walkway leading back to the rear hangar doors is suspended above the central gravity plane, so gravity works normally there, but once Captain Randall climbs down the ladder to reach the wheel located midway down the wall - next to the hangar bay doors - he can feel that awkward shift of gravity taking place, as his upper body feels right-side-up, and his lower body feels up-side-down.
The doors slowly rumble open.
Randall starts operating the hangar bay door's wheel - it's no longer rusty, but still requires a good amount of effort. "Good afternoon, Sasha, if that's you out there," he calls once it's opened a foot. "Would you like to come in for a spot of tea?"
"You might want to cover your eyes when Takora-san springs into action," Holly whispers back to Inari.
Inari says, "Oh, I'm not worried at all as long as we have this nice solid door between us and it."
Suddenly, something whistles past Randall's ear, and embeds itself in a support nearby. Out of the corner of his eye, Captain Randall can see the gleam of the faint red light reflecting off of ... a throwing star?
Randall leans over to check that his wrist-PDA is on broadcast only-- yikes! Lucky move. "Can we talk about this?" he protests, diving for cover.
Outside, Randall can hear the sounds of the expanse - and more explosions from the direction of Shipwreck, along with a ringing gong, lots of "Yarrrr!" and "Arrrrr!" noises, accompanied by the occasional, "HEEEEYAHAAAAAA!"
"Why didn't he just say, 'Hey, shoot at me!' instead, Holly growls, and starts planning.
Randall momentarily feels a breeze rush by - a bit of air rushing in, perhaps, perhaps due to an equalization of pressure.
Just outside the hangar doors, clinging all around, are several dark-clad forms with red glints in their eyes. There's no doubt about it: They're NINJAS! Or at least, this universe's version of them. And from a quick headcount, there are at least 8 of them right outside the door, eager to get in.
"It appears our guests aren't who I thought they were," Randall says dryly over wrist com. "Hangar to bridge, ninja infestation. Mara, freeze the hangar door!"
"Okay," Holly says. "Invisible foes, big open door.. aha!" She chants, "When in doubt, a riot gun and a BURST of inspiration can do wonders!" as she reaches into her robes.
Pulling a police riot gun from her robes, Holly moves to pull the door open. "Randall can't hear us, hope he knows to duck when told to do so!"
Once the door is opened enough for the gun to poke through, Holly says, "Randall, duck. Really, really duck.. I don't have time to armor you!" into the comm, 'aims' the weapon out of the open bay door... and waits for her Captain to get out of the way.
Randall shifts to a different cover. "I thought they were kidding when they advertised daily ninja attacks!" he yelps.
Inari cries out, "Oh, I hope you know what you're doing!"
Holly pulls the trigger, and only then wonders, "Do magical blasts have recoil?"
The riot gun packs more of a punch than one might suspect even from its appearance, as it blasts the better part of the hangar bay with a cone of fire and shrapnel. Eight ninja silhouettes explode in puffs of smoke - and there's what sounds like a pained panther's mrowl and a scream from somewhere else in the hangar. Blood spatters against one of the ornithopters.
Once the smoke clears, there's no more sign of the ninja invading force. The blood hasn't vanished, however - though there's no sign of where it came from.
"Now, Mara!" Randall signals to Mara to unleash her icy breath against the hangar door to seal it up. He pictures a sheet of ice across the width of the door.
Dropping the riot gun (which vanishes), Holly shakes her head to clear her ears, and says, "Remind me not to try that indoors again."
And just as he pictures it, Mara cranes her neck, sweeping back and forth as she sprays the hangar bay with a stream of ice and glowing blue mist that quickly solidifies into a thick icy wall.
Well, how about that, it works! Randall thinks, pleasedly. But how many more ninjas are there outside? He remembers seeing at least eight outside. And he heard a distinctly cat-like noise. "Sasha, stay down 'til we've cleared the ninjas," he says from his cover, extracting his cutlass.
Outside, several silhouettes can be faintly seen shuffling along the outside of the hangar bay doors, with gleaming red eyes - but it looks like, at least for now, the ice barrier is solid enough to keep them at bay.
"You could take your hat off too, you know, Errol Flynn" Holly calls to Randall. "I'm not sure that I can dispel stealth."
Inari confirms, "Invisibility can be dispelled. Remarkable skills cannot - though there are curses that can make skills temporarily less effective. I'm not sure what you would conjure to cause such effects, though."
Randall grins and replies, "The thought had occurred to me, Miss Calamity, but someone yelled 'Duck!' and in a game of poker, Duck beats Tako." He gets up warily, playing the bait - he's not willing to risk that the octopus can somehow entangle invisible or stealthy enemies, if it can't see them.
"I have an idea," Holly says. "By the power of Comic Books Advertisements," she intones. "X-Ray Specs See Through Clothes!" She reaches into a pocket and pulls out.. a pair of paper glasses with spirals drawn on the lenses.
"Inari, take these to Randall," Holly says, figuring Miss Invisible will be safer going into the hangar than she would be.
The glasses are snatched away, and the door squeezes open a little more as an invisible Inari bounds into the room....
... and a moment later, Randall discovers he has a new pair of glasses that seem to do wonders for his eyesight.
And none too soon! The first thing that Randall notices with his new specs is a shimmering form that wasn't there but a moment ago - a giant, shadowy panther, with shadowy-but-very-obviously-sharp claws, which seems to have slinked around slightly to his flank, and is poised as if to do the "one-two" slashing attack he saw it do to a foam-covered Nightmare once upon a time!
Randall blinks, looking around in his new spectacles. "Thanks, Holly," he says to thin air. Wait, what was that-- he whirls around trying to bring his cutlass up to parry the attack. Mara rears up as well.
Suddenly, the panther becomes plainly visible to all in the chamber, accompanied by a flurry of slashes of claws. Although Captain Randall is unable to fend off the blows with his cutlass in time, he at least manages to present a better defense than if he had taken the hit unawares from behind. He takes a few superficial slashes, but his fancy new duds hold up to the punishment perhaps even better than kevlar.
There's no sign of Sasha, however - and the panther does not appear to be wounded (though it's hard to tell for certain, since its form is still slightly translucent).
Glad they taught me how to fight wire-heads in the academy, Randall thinks to himself as he staggers back under its attack. He jumps back, then sweeps a bow taking off his hat, "I salute you, Midnight, as a worthy opponent!" This reveals an incongruous octopus clinging to his head.
"Inari, run if you're still in there!" Holly offers.
Inari SCREAMS, shimmering back into visible form as she gives up all pretenses of stealth and bolts her way back through the door, almost bowling Holly over in her panicked egress.
The octopus swells to enormous size in a flash. Tentacles shoot outward, and through the doorway - and Inari, who was just so close to escaping to freedom, is nonetheless grabbed by a shooting tentacle and dragged back. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" she cries out, clawing and scraping at the floor tiles - to no avail - as she disappears into the writhing mess that is the hangar now.
"Err, I'll come get you out," Holly promises weakly. She isn't making any attempt to approach just yet though.
Another screaming "NOOOOOO!" echoes from somewhere else in the hangar, but if such exclamations negate stealth, the interposing tentacles make more than enough cover to make up for it. Randall and Mara are lost as well, despite Mara's heroic (and vain, and reflexive) effort to shield him from the blast with her wings.
"I'm never trusting you again!" Inari shrieks. "GET IT OFF GET IT OFF GET IT OFF!"
"Just keep yelling so I can find you," Holly says, making her way cautiously towards the slimy mass. "I'm not caught this time myself, so maybe it'll obey now," she notes, and clears her throat. "Mr. Octopus, present your captives to me one by one please," she instructs the monstrosity.
Despite the tangle of tentacles every which way, Captain Randall finds that his cutlass does indeed have its useful properties. Somehow, the sword and the arm attached to it manage to keep free of the tentacles - and they reflexively get out of his way as he experimentally shifts it about.
Randall straightens up from his bow, holding his sword en garde, or rather as a shield against the clingy tentacles. "Now that's a Tako Surprise," he observes dryly, going toward where he heard the second scream. "How much oomf did you put in that, dear Lady Holly?" He thinks reassuring thoughts to Mara, I'll have you out of there once we get Sasha and Moonlight secured.
"Enough to give Captain Nemo nightmares," Holly replies.
The tentacles of the monstrosity begin to shift and turn, accompanied by a low thrum. It may be of little consolation to Inari at this point, but it appears that this beastie has taken the form of a certain theme park ride, and it begins to rotate in place, with its various captives held in separate tentacles, being slowly turned about for presentation at the end of the ride (the walkway where Holly safely observes).
*** Note to GW: All occurrences of Moonbeam should instead be Moonlight. Oops! Previous logs may need fixing as well.
"Okay, let that one go," Holly says when Inari is presented.
Chink chink chink As Randall makes his way through the maze of tentacles, he can see the ninja silhouettes busily - and pointlessly - trying to chip their way through the ice block with sais and shuriken and more exotic "ninja weapons." There's quite a crowd of them outside now.
Inari shudders violently as she's deposited onto the observation platform, and then gives Holly a baleful GLARE ... quickly cut off as she bolts through the doorway and back into the only corridor offering any hope of escape from the scene.
"Well, you could have come back sooner you know," Holly says after the retreating form, and turns back to watch for Randall.
Randall ducks through the medley of tentacles, trusting Mara to deal with the ninjas by refreshing the ice block if needed. "Sasha?" he inquires hopefully of the other unnamed captive, the one that is neither Inari nor Moonlight. "Officer Cranston here, if you don't recognize me. May I have your word that you'll behave? You'll be free to go if you choose, but I'd like the courtesy of a little chat with you first."
The next "rider" presented is a young woman in a fantasy "rogue armor" outfit with lots of mesh and netting and black leather - the sort of thing that parents probably wouldn't want their children dressing up as in online games (and about as bad as Tracer's alter-ego costume, come to think of it). It looks like Sasha all right, a bit bloodied, and looking a bit dazed.
"Hah, you aren't getting off this ride yet, you little.. ahem," Holly says, and gestures for the octopus to bring up the next rider.
Randall hops off of the tentacle and alights next to Holly. "I rather think you traumatized poor Inari," he says ruefully. "Can't you put in an exclusion for us in these things?"
Sasha looks like she's still dazed, and not entirely responsive to Holly just yet.
Moonlight, somewhere within the mass of tentacles, hisses and spits, but it sounds like she hasn't managed to extract herself quite yet (if that's even possible anytime in the near future anyway).
"I'll work on it," Holly replies. "You're willing to volunteer for the testing, right?"
The 'pirate captain' chuckles, then reaches out and shakes Sasha gently on the shoulder. "Wake up, Sasha. It's Officer Cranston." He uses his 'friendly police officer' voice, the one that says it may sound like a request but is in fact an order.
Sasha makes a quiet moan, and her eyes wander about, then finally focus on Captain Randall. "Oh ... hey ... Officer Cranston. ... Funny meeting you here, huh?" She gives him a cockeyed grin.
"Well, you happened to drop by to pay us a little social call at the same time as the daily ninja attack," Randall says in a perfectly reasonable tone of voice. "What brings you by, Sasha?"
Sasha shifts a bit in her bindings, looking more intently at Officer Randall. "Uhm ... what's with the specs, Officer?" Then, it looks as if something dawns on her, and she mouths a silent "oh." "Gee, I hope those things don't work like advertised."
"I can make the tentacles squeeze her if you want," Holly offers to Randall.
"Hey!" Sasha protests. "I was just kidding. Have a sense of humor, you--" She clamps her mouth shut, not finishing that sentence.
"I can probably have them suck her hair off too," Holly growls, her eyes narrowing.
Randall takes the specs off and examines them. "They do look a little silly, don't they? No, I don't have any better appreciation of your facial bone structure, Sasha. But they did allow me to catch sight of your little friend before she made a very good attempt on parting me from my spleen."
Inari's head peeks around the corner of the doorway, but it looks like she's not going to make any moves to get any further into the room if she doesn't have to.
"Oh," Sasha says. "Sorry about that, Officer. I got hit by some buckshot. Moonlight's really protective, you know."
Randall sighs, returning the glasses to Holly. "Yes, my apologies, ninjas, random fire. While I could put you in cuffs, it's somewhat more difficult to do so for your friend. May I have your word that you will be on good behavior, and Moonlight as well, while you are on board this ship? In return, I will affidavit that you are not a prisoner and may leave when you wish. Though I will hope you'd stay long enough for a little tea and so we can patch up that wound."
"I should go get rid of the ninjas," Holly mutters as she accepts the glasses back. "I have a sudden urge to violently blast something."
The 'pirate captain' catches Holly's eye and shakes his head minutely - he still wants her here.
"Girl Scout's Honor," Sasha says, working her hand around to make something that looks more like a peace sign. "I was just doing a little solo recon - thought I could slip in and out during the Daily Ninja Attack. Guess I got too cocky - and I didn't really know for sure I'd find you all on board."
"'Recon' sounds just a teensy little bit unfriendly, Sasha," Randall points out, considering the bound young woman. "While it did use to be an Imperial ship, true, I'd like to think we're good guys on here." He considers, then decides. "Holly, can you let just her loose, and we'll take her to the infirmary for treatment? Mara will let me know if the ninjas are making any progress."
"Handcuff her first," Holly suggests.
As if to back up Sasha's statement, Moonlight stops hissing and spitting, but just makes a low "unhappy large cat" grumble.
Sasha, meanwhile, moves her hands a bit as if to present them for handcuffing (though there's a limit to how far she can move them with all the tentacles). "I trust you, Officer Cranston. I won't try anything stupid."
Inari, from the doorway, mumbles something unintelligible, but which nonetheless seems less-than-friendly.
"It's the clever stuff you try that I'm worried about," Holly grumbles. "Be sure to frisk her down too! She could have a comm, or a tracer or who knows what.."
Randall sighs. "Trust is a two-way street," he replies. "If you take nothing else from this, take from me that I believe that I am an honorable person, and working to protect innocent lives and uphold the law." Helstering his cutlass, he holds his hand out to Sasha to take.
With a sigh, Holly gestures for the octopus to free Sasha's hands.
The tentacles slowly unwrap, seemingly just as reluctant as Holly, but at last Sasha is free. She takes Randall's hand, blushing slightly as she steps off onto the platform. "Thank you," she says, avoiding looking in Holly's direction.
Holly doesn't look at Sasha either, instead turning to Inari. "When she's in the infirmary, get her a paper gown or something," she says. "No way is she getting any of her stuff until we've examined it."
Inari whispers back, "There's not much in the infirmary. The main piece of surgical equipment is a hacksaw, after all. Though I suppose we could wrap her up like a mummy in bandages."
"These are difficult times, and trust can be hard to earn," Randall says philosophically, adjusting his hat. "So, tell me, what happened since we left?"
"I like that notion," Holly replies. "It's not our fault if all we have for digging out buckshot are sporks."
Sasha shows no sign of overhearing the morbid discussions between Inari and Holly. "The city was overrun by Shadow creatures, and we had to fish them out even after the castle exploded...."
Randall looks horrified. "That's terrible! Full daylight should have weakened them substantially."
Sasha narrates a bit of the details of the battle: Fry and his bear flying around on an amber cloud and using Earth powers to keep buildings from collapsing, and to erect barricades to pen in what monsters weren't flight capable, and to seal off some of the buildings that the more light-sensitive monsters had retreated into (once it was clear there were no civilians trapped inside with them). Blake's flaming lion provided most of the mop-up power, specializing in fire-based area-effect attacks (which conveniently affected ONLY enemies, and not friendlies), while Sasha and Moonlight focused on sneak attacks against more powerful individuals.
Randall nods as Sasha goes on.
According to Sasha, Jenny's unicorn was focused mostly on defensive powers, herding civilians together and marking off areas to ward out Shadow creatures, and administering emergency healing when necessary. And as the day went on, even the more powerful Shadow creatures quickly lost power, lacking the ability to "recharge" after their expensive and destructive (but unfocused) attacks. In the end, the heroes were victorious, although much rebuilding would be required.
"Well done," Randall says, complimenting their teamwork and preservation of the city. He brings her into the infirmary and urges her to continue with what happened, while he cleans the wound.
"We celebrated our victory at the IHOF, as usual," Sasha says, occasionally pausing to hiss in pain as Officer Randall applies disinfectant from his first aid kit. (True to Inari's report, the infirmary is lacking in proper medical equipment.) "Blake was the last to get in, and he came in with the Sage, and he said that he'd been briefed on how this was time for the final assault against the darkness - how we'd have to take the fight to the Shadow Lands to save our world. He didn't exactly blame you, I suppose - not in so many words - for what happened, but I guess he kind of hinted that maybe it wasn't such a great idea, whatever you did, that resulted in that castle full of Shadow creatures trashing the park."
"Hmm, interesting, and this 'final assault', did he give a target?" Randall says, finding the thin-nose pliers to hand. He applies a bit of topical anesthetic from a squeeze-tube and waits a bit for the skin to numb, then glances down at his wrist PDA, bringing up Mara's view.
"Does it matter what he said?" Holly notes. "He can't be trusted."
In the Mara's-eye-view projected on the PDA, through the rippled effect of the ice barrier, Randall can see the ninjas, one by one, striking poses, and then vanishing in puffs of smoke.
Randall blinks, then hits the 'replay' button and shows this to Holly. He grins wryly.
"Oh!" Sasha says, flinching a little as she looks up briefly to Holly, then quickly away. "I didn't see you there. Boy, you're quiet."
"Yeah, you didn't notice me when you were seducing my husband either, apparently," Holly mutters.
"Hold still please," Randall says, sensing an imbroglio and reminding Sasha that she doesn't want to squirm while he's picking out buckshot. "Holly means to say we have information that suggests Blake is not being entirely level with you, Sasha. But let me get the story from you before I tell you what we know, all right?"
Sasha frowns, momentarily glancing to Holly, then back to Officer Randall. She nods faintly, and holds still, but then resumes talking, almost at a nervous chatter pace, as if it's just as much to steady her nerves as to provide any useful information. "Nothing was terribly specific - I mean, it never really is, when it comes to fighting the darkness - but then, it's usually pretty easy to see who the enemies are." She continues on with her narrative, giving a brief travelogue of their passage through a temporarily reconstructed gate at the remains of the gazebo, and ending up on what must have been Cauchemarem. They had new armor, and special light crystals, and better weapons, and other special blessings - though they were warned that they would need to rely on their Guardians against the enemies they would face, and that they might not see the sun again for a while, except as a distant, cold light.
"Light crystals?" Holly asks. "How convenient. Do you have one with you?"
Sasha looks reluctant. "Moonlight has it," she says. "It's a pendant. A locket - so it won't give away her position when she's hiding." She then returns to her account - and it sounds as if the battle with the giant carriage and the swarms of doombats must have already happened before their arrival. She gives no mention of the light barrier - only a mention of a "flash" as they passed through some point far enough away from the ground - and then their travel along the "aether sea," battling (and destroying) various shadowy enemies along the way.
Randall nods encouragingly, and makes sure the wounds are clean. "So Blake made sure you were anticipating a fight," he observes. "Did you bring along provisions as well?"
"That's one of the special blessings Jenny has," Sasha says. "A cornucopia power. For a unicorn. Kind of funny, huh?"
"Yeah, I'm giggling on the inside," Holly claims, poker-faced.
"Interesting, go on, then?" Randall says. Maybe they've been eating real food, but if not... He feels a little chill run down his spine but continues, closing up and spraying skin sealant over the wound area.
Sasha continues, "We fought some evil soldier types, and Blake managed to get them to 'fess up that their base was in this place called Gurglemast ... Glorpen ... something gross and evil like that. We were headed that way, when suddenly there was this big flash of light. I went to scout ahead, though Blake did his usual 'No, it's too dangerous' deal. You know, him being the heroic guy and me being a girl and all." She looks appreciatively over to Officer Randall. "But I guess I can't take care of myself all the time, huh?"
"Friends are always a good thing," Randall agrees.
Holly just.. glares, looking like she wants to snort derisively.
Sasha nods agreeably. "Well, they caught up, but I kept Moonlight hidden, and I don't know how Jenny was so sure, but she saw something and thought that it might be you all on that ship. I don't really know. Anyway, it looked like your ship was in pretty bad shape, and it was breaking up. Then - well, then things got really weird. There was some sort of magic going on, and Blake cried out - I mean, he never makes noises like that - and then he started to get real ugly. And Jenny screamed, and Fry tried to protect her, and then Blake - or Monster-Blake, or Possessed-Blake or whatever - he started shouting and blasting at Fry - and then there was this big death angel thing that showed up, and by that point I had no idea what was going on, but it seemed like it knew all of us were there, so I dismissed Moonlight quick - didn't know what else to do...."
Randall looks shocked. "He attacked 'Small'? Was anyone injured-- no, go on," he says, encouraging Sasha to continue.
Sasha seems a bit more intense here, faster paced. "I couldn't really see it all clearly, but - Zap. I didn't see what all happened then, but everyone was gone. And I saw your ship blow up something awful and go flying toward that big lightning planet. I thought I was going to fall - well, I guess I was falling - but it was toward that planet - and when I tried to call Moonlight back, she wouldn't come. So ... I started screaming. I mean, what can you do?"
"But you miraculously survived somehow," Holly notes.
"Yeah," Sasha says, nodding. "Just right. This skyship came up, and there were these crazy people on board - like - Oh-Em-Gee, we're all gonna die for real - as if there's any other way of dying. But someone still fished me up."
Randall says helpfully, "In such a circumstance, I'd suggest removing your coat and using it as a flag to try and signal a passing ship, but it sounds like they saw you, anyway." He smiles, glad that she was rescued.
"The Heroes from the golem scenario that the General routed," Holly suggests to Randall.
"My very thought," Randall agrees.
Sasha blushes. "Well ... I don't exactly have a coat to ..." She coughs, then continues, "Anyway, before I could, you know, find out who they were, introduce myself, ask where my friends were, or whatever, there were all these black holes ... or whirlpools in space ... or whatever. And of course one appears right in front of us and we get sucked in, and there's all this screaming and hollering and stuff getting thrown all around. Like, some rescue, you know?"
Randall recommends, "You might want to look into getting a coat at our next port of call. They keep the rain and snow off, and you can use them for a cushion or blanket on uncertain ground. They are also quite fashionable. But I digress."
In a low voice next to Holly, Inari hisses, "Oh, and the whirlpool just HAPPENS to toss her over to Shipwreck, huh? All that fancy flying Captain Randall and Jason did, and she just ends up in the same place?" Inari makes a disdainful tongue-cluck noise.
"The system was locking down the area and moving the VPCs out," Holly whispers back. "Let's see what she says."
Sasha shivers a bit, wrapping her hands around herself, then says, "Anyway, the ship got wrecked, we got captured by pirates, and then we went on this long journey - I don't know, a few weeks, maybe? - and we got to this big storm and lots of people died during the journey - or got lost overboard, which I guess is probably a sure death anyway - and then we finally ended up at this place called "Shipwreck." And then I started asking around, trying to find my friends - and describing you, too, while I was at it, just in case - and I was told about this ship that came in real fancy-like, and it sounded sort of like that rustbucket of yours, only a whole lot nicer. And, well, they mentioned this really short woman and this skinny guy and this guy with the mustache, and a little dragon - and I figured that might describe you guys. And then there were all these ninjas attacking, and I figured it was a good time to check things out. Only, you know, I still wasn't really sure if you were the good guys or n
... or not, so I decided to stay hidden when you opened the door to let all the ninjas in."
"So, you weren't the one trying to pick the locks on the other hatches?" Holly asks.
"Locks?" Sasha looks incredulous. "I looked for some, sure, but there weren't any. I watched some of the ninjas, though - they seemed to be acting like there were keyholes and they were trying to pick them, but they weren't doing any better."
"And you've been eating and drinking whatever you were fed since being separated from Blake and the others?" Holly asks next.
"Well, yeah, of course," Sasha says. "I mean, the pirates could have poisoned me, but it's not like I could really do anything about it until I got a chance to escape." She blushes. "I persuaded my way out, you know. Got one of the pirates to look the other way while I slipped off. I was kind of surprised, how easy it was." She then looks up suddenly. "I mean ... I didn't have to do anything bad. Not like you might be thinking. I just sort of flirted with him and then he was like, okay, sure, pretty lady - and I was out of there."
Randall nods appreciatively. "Understandable caution, Sasha. All right, now let me tell you about a missing person, Sasha. Her name is Knightley, the same as yours. A coincidence?" He brings up the biography of Sasha Knightley, and begins describing her life. Only twenty, this young woman had managed a rather surprising list of achievements nevertheless, if it's to be believed. Pilot, asteroid miner, the Venusian biospheres, model, actress, employed by Avatars LLC... They make a game called Avatars, which is set in a place called the Diadem. He watches Sasha's face for recognition as he goes on. "She vanished this past winter, though there was no missing person report filed. She may have been assisting a researcher named Forester."
Holly doesn't look entirely convinced by Sasha's story. "She didn't mention how she got Moonlight back," she notes to Randall.
Sasha puts her hands to her face, looking too shocked to respond to Holly's challenge. "My ... this can't be right. That's ... that's not...."
"We have reason to believe that Blake was performing research that somehow connected these worlds," Randall says intently. "A number of people who had contact with Blake disappeared." He describes some of the other biographies, selecting those bits that 'Sasha Knightley' would likely have known about, displaying their pictures.
"What are you suggesting?" Sasha says, looking momentarily defiant. "Are you suggesting that Blake is somehow responsible for ... I ... even if this were ... I mean, what you're suggesting...." Even though she seems to be protesting, there's still no denying that Randall is doing a rather exhaustive job of laying down the evidence, and it looks like he's getting through to her.
"Blake is capable of anything, Sasha," Holly claims. "He's tried to kill my daughter and hus.. ex-husband in the real world."
Randall brings up pictures of Blake Forester and describes him a little from what he's been told by Akiko and what's available in the corporate database from Holly, and finally, a picture of Sasha Knightley herself, adult. It's her employee badge picture. "Sasha, while you were in the simulated North Bend, under the supervision of 'Fjalar the Learned', we have reason to believe you were subjected to brainwashing. But now you are free. You can choose for yourself. You no longer need to be bound by lies."
Sasha shakes her head. "There's something wrong with this place," she admits. "There's something unnatural. There were things those people said ... there was something wrong with the way they spoke, like they were play-acting half the time ... but Blake ... no, the Blake I know isn't like that. You've got to be wrong." She puts her hands to her head. "Either that, or Blake ..." She closes her eyes, shaking her head again. "I don't want to think about it. This is just like one of that spirit-fox's tricks again." But even as she says it, she doesn't sound wholly convinced of her own words.
Holly can hear Inari taking a couple of shuffling steps backward around the corner, as if the fox-thing really doesn't think now's a good time to be noticed.
"The Blake who shot at Fry?" Randall points out. "Who not only looked ugly, but spoke in an ugly fashion when he met with opposition to his grand design?"
"The Blake who left you adrift, and has been more concerned with attacking us than finding you?" Holly adds.
"He could have been possessed," Sasha cries out, but then she stops. "Of course ... he's never the one who's possessed. It's always me or Fry or Jenny ... but never Blake. But if it's never Blake...." She squints hard, and a tear rolls down her cheek. She sniffles.
"He made you into a doll. A toy," Holly presses. "Not that it isn't an improvement over who you really are, but I doubt he gave you that choice."
Sasha shoots Holly an angry glare. Despite whatever magic armor she might be wearing, it looks like her thick mascara is still of the mundane variety, and capable of running.
Randall reaches out and pats Sasha's hand. "He manipulated you, but you don't have to accept his lies anymore," he says soothingly. "You can be yourself again. Didn't you feel as if he always had to be first, that he was pushing you back into a role he wanted you to perform?"
Sasha looks back to Randall, and whatever fire was in her eyes cools off, as she glances down. "I ... I know a lot of it ... just dreams, I know. Those things didn't really happen. But I had dreams where I was important to Blake. I was special. He loved me." She sniffs. "And then he pushed me aside. He got Jenny. I know ... I know that was the reality - it was always Jenny ... but sometimes I felt like ... sometimes I wanted that dream, and I felt like he'd betrayed me somehow. And Fry ... the look he'd get sometimes...." She shakes her head, as if to clear it.
Randall looks disturbed. "Could he have..." He glances over to Holly, the implications of this scenario disturbing him.
Over near Holly, Inari makes a quiet hissing intake of breath. She seems to be "biting her tongue," so to speak.
"Fry and Jenny were husband and wife before Blake got hold of them," Holly explains. "He can mess with your conscious memories, but not with your subconscious stuff. But of all the people he's sucked in, I figured you'd have been the one to volunteer for it, Sasha. You always were a good actress, and messing with others was something of a hobby for you."
Sasha wipes at her cheek. "That's ... I knew it. You really hate me, don't you? You've got it in for me - I can tell."
"Damn straight, but I hate Blake more," Holly notes. "Now my daughter, she really hates you. And just to test your sincerity, you'll be eating from the ship's galley, and not our private supplies of real food."
"Is the food that bad?" Sasha asks, looking askance to Officer Cranston.
"Madre de Dios," Randall mutters. More conversationally, he says "It was a past version of yourself, Sasha. I don't know what happened, but I do know you are a real human being, someone who was somehow brought in from the world outside the game, and who is entitled to the protection of the law." In response to her question: "As for that, we don't know for sure, but..." He describes the difference in molecular structure, and then what Sage Fjalar said about 'protocols' regarding virtual food and real.
"I'd rather that you avoid the virtual food, myself," Randall admits, giving Holly an eye. "So far as I know, the IHOF where you typically ate was always stocked somehow with 'real' food."
Sasha looks as if she's having trouble taking in all the particulars, as translated by Officer Cranston, but then says, "So ... eating the galley food is a bad thing? Am I supposed to ... what should I do, then?"
"She's been eating the virtual stuff for weeks now," Holly points out. "If Blake's protocols are still working, then some of that might have been real, or not. In which case, eating more of it won't make things worse now."
"I'd suggest that you share in the rations and we'll try to minimize exposure to virtual food, but if we can get Jenny and Nick to join us, that may considerably ease our food problems, if her Cornucopia is somehow connected to real world sources," Randall says thoughtfully. "Hopefully it's not calibrated to a steady diet of TasteeCakes."
Sasha shakes her head. "No, it's all healthy. All vegetarian, too."
Randall looks askance at Holly, "The IHOF where she was eating should have served real food, shouldn't it?"
"She said she was 'weeks' on the pirate ship before getting to Shipwreck," Holly notes. "And she hasn't told us how she escaped from them or how she got Moonlight back when she couldn't summon her before."
Randall looks bemused. "For us, it's only been a few days, and my wrist PDA agrees on that," he observes.
Sasha says, "I told you, I talked my way off the ship. Flirted. Whatever. And once I got to Shipwreck, I could summon Moonlight again. And the locket was magical, so it came back with her."
"Flirted with a pirate?" Holly asks, one eyebrow raised. "In the real world, that would have gotten you.. never mind," she says with a sigh, and makes a gesture of futility with her arms.
"How much of the trip on the pirate ship do you remember?" asks Randall. "Do you recall what you ate on there, or is it more feeling as if you had been on that ship for weeks?"
"I had crusty bread and gruel and stagnant water," Sasha says. "No rum, if you're worried about that. Pretty much day in, day out ... not much happening. People moaning, pirates coming and beating on anyone who made too much noise. That sort of thing. But they didn't touch me, at least."
"These protocols that 'Sage' talked about could be complete balderdash," Randall muses. "I wish we had a way to find out."
"We'll want to have Jason check her status flags," Holly comments. "See if she's a VPC or something ambiguous."
Randall nods agreement. "In either case... I think it's time we checked up on Moonlight, and made sure her wounds are all right."
The police officer turned 'pirate captain' stands and offers Sasha a hand up from the examination table.
Sasha says, "I dismissed Moonlight. She's resting ... wherever she rests when I don't have her summoned." She takes the hand and stands up.
"You can do that? Does she recover from her wounds in such a state, and what happens to, um, buckshot that may have lodged?" asks Randall.
"No funny business or flirting either while you're here," Holly warns Sasha. "Get out of line and... you'll get a spanking! And not by a dashing pirate captain, either."
Sasha looks taken aback by Holly's threat, and instead switches the subject back to Moonlight. "She can recover from all sorts of wounds over the course of a day, just by resting when she's dismissed. But here there's not really much sunlight - so that's why I have the locket."
"Yes, it will be a patented Mommy Spanking, hurts much worse than regular spanking," Randall quips. "Let me take care of securing the hangar bay door then, and making sure Mara is all right. Oh, and you'll need to know about General Ironfist, if you decide you want to stay with us."
A short while later, Randall makes a sweep of the hangar bay, finding the ice barrier melting away into glowing blue mist, without leaving so much as a puddle - and with no sign of the enormous animatronic octopus. It's a fairly simple matter to crank the hangar bays closed, and to check on Mara.
"And that's the gist of it, the ninja attack happened right when we were breaking the news to General Ironfist that he's living in a game universe," Randall explains while turning the wheel. "At the moment, he's under the impression that we're Imperial officers, though he may have a shadowy suspicion we're more than we seem. Do you want to be an undercover officer or a castaway that we rescued?"
"No wandering around unescorted," Holly tells Sasha, continuing her list of rules the girl is to follow. "No.. uh.. writing dark poetry about your true love abandoning you. I hate that stuff."
Randall gives Holly a funny look.
Holly just gestures to what Sasha is wearing in reply.
"I suppose I can fit whatever role you have in mind," Sasha says, smiling to Captain Randall.
"No smiling at the Captain!" Holly adds.
Sasha frowns obligingly, though it's directed to Holly.
Randall gives Holly another funny look.
"Look, if you behave and earn our trust, I'll let you use my makeup table, how's that?" she offers the girl, while thinking, "The only good thing to come of this is that once Tracer sees what Sasha is wearing she'll never even think of touching leather and fishnet again.."