savetheearth | video;

[Lily appears on the Network for the first time in... weeks, really. Beyond a couple of text posts here and there, she's still been largely... shut down. As it stands, she looks more than a little worn out. Lack of sleep isn't as severe as it was a couple weeks ago, but things have still clearly taken a certain toll on her.

All the same, she smiles weakly at the camera. She's in her and Winter's room at the hotel provided to them in Germany.]

Hello, everyone. I've been... quiet for a little while, and I'm sorry about that. I can't say I've been in nearly as bad a spot as other people, but... [She bites her lip.] I guess I need to still work on dealing with certain kinds of things better, myself.

[She shakes her head.] But that's not what I'm here about.

Some weeks ago, Numbered were permitted by the German and Austrian authorities to investigate the large tower that appeared. Winter, myself, and several others made our way through it and eventually... well, found out we can go higher in it, and to space. You might already know about that, but...

We weren't the only ones there. Winter and I encountered two of the aliens - Geoff Benwick and Badri Barkley. But what we saw was them arguing, heatedly. In a language neither of us have ever heard or could understand.

Winter was recording it via Network access at the time, although there's no sound. Barkley in particular was acting strangely, once they noticed our presence - making a supposed "joke" about blowing the place up with us in it, which was what prompted us to transform. Instinct, I guess. And he brazenly admitted they got in their uninvited, having "lots of was of getting into places without permission."

Benwick was much more even tempered, but it was... very, very strange. Informing the authorities out here, they're tightening security, and have told us to keep an eye out for them. If they do anything else particularly strange, we should notify authorities, probably on both continents.

They also want information on them, whatever we might have. I can't... say this is a bad idea, especially knowing how dangerous Barkley could potentially be, for a group of people who said they came with no real weapons.

[Though perhaps not technically untrue - Badri is not inherently a weapon. Right?]

Also sort of bothersome... they had a bunch of Happy Meals. A lot. This isn't so strange, but... there were bags from all over Europe. I noticed that when were there, and going back over Winter's footage and doing some searching, it looks like there were ones in German, French, Italian, Swedish, Spanish, Greek, Finnish, Polish, and Hungarian.

They've been going all over the place, and if this is the first we're realizing this... That bothers me more than a little bit.

Still... this is just what we ran into. Be careful, and if you see anything else amiss... Tell someone.

[OOC - Apologies this is so late after the actual event, although they did not actually come across the aliens until late into that post as it was, plus some necessary fact checking with the mods! Luckily, a little mental trauma kept some folks grounded for a bit, so that... works for the most part. :D; ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Yeah, it's a little... odd, but the more important thing there is where all they came from. They've been... busy.

And something tells me they weren't in it just for the little toys.

Clearly not, considering they offered us some.

But... it sends a message, in a way.

They can act where we can't.

And they can travel pretty well pretty fast.

I'd ask if any of it seemed spoiled, but...McDonald's. They probably could have left it sitting there for weeks and it would be the same.

[He's seen all those posts on the Internet. He knows. And he's a food snob on top of that, anyway.]

Oh, tell me about it. There's a reason I don't eat that junk.

All the same, you're right - they can, and if they were able to get up there so easily before anyone else... That's another reminder that we're a little outclassed in some ways.

Can't say I like that feeling very much.

[He sighs.]

We've got to have someone around here who can travel really fast if we need it...if only we didn't have those boundaries to worry about.

...yeah, we've got to, I'd think.

[She pauses a moment, thinking it over, before changing the connection to private.]

I kind of try to not make a big deal about it, simply because... We still don't know who was leaking what to the mob, but - I'd be one of those people. Or Winter and me, now.

We have an object that allows us to transport between places via our own portal. I have to know where I'm going, but the power of Google Maps can help a lot there. This includes between Echo Boundaries. So, if it becomes a problem, we can be wherever we need to... at least as far as the Boundaries go.

[She sighs.]

That's the one problem, I guess.

That's good to know.

Best I can do is offer to help blow anything up pretty well if the need arises. Get me there, and I think I can smash pretty much anything. I'm...not really sure what my limits are, but I know I can do a lot of damage.

[She manages to smile at that.]

Well, in the end, we always seem to need that in one way or another. That much at least, we have in common.

Yeah. Funny how that works out.

[A long sigh.]

Still, you've been... doing this for a long time, even more than me, right? You... seem to have your head about you more than some folks.

If I might ask, how do you... manage that?

Yeah. I've been on the network since it first went live.

[There's a low chuckle.]

I have no idea some days. I just...go to work and stay there as long as I can when I don't want to think about anything.

...I guess having the distraction's good. Used to be able to just throw myself into school, but right now...

[Sigh.] I guess I need a hobby that's not. Well. Reading.

Motorcycles are good for that, too. You can tinker with the engine, or you can just go driving around.

[He sighs.]

Even if messing with the engine hasn't been as much fun since I got that pulse that put the bike in like new condition.

[She has a momentary consideration of that, and then pictures herself on a motorcycle... before laughing in a bit of a self deprecating manner.] I guess I can see that, though... I'd have a hard time picturing me doing something like that.

[...] Have you considered just getting a new- uh, old one?

Eh, it's not the same. The bike transforms and stuff now--no way I could replace that.

[There's a chuckle of his own.]

And if I can find a back road somewhere, it goes faster than it ever did before. Might get an engine to tinker with for the hell of it, though...

Oh, the motorcycle transforms.

It's weird to think there was a time that would surprise me. Weirder to think it doesn't now.

Yeah, it's kind of strange how a motorcycle magically transforming to match me is somehow normal in the middle of all this.

At this point, I'd be almost disappointed if it DIDN'T.

Really, in retrospect, I'm kind of surprised it didn't happen sooner. At first, all I thought was that the engine had suddenly gotten new and the paint had gone from blue to red, but no, it's got a few more tricks than that.

You're saying your bike has super powers too, or something like that?

Yeah, it's pretty cool. I think I can use it with some of the other stuff I've gotten too, even if I haven't had much cause to yet.

[A sigh.] Somehow, I'm starting to get the impression you'll get plenty chance there, soon.

Yeah. Wouldn't surprise me--but at least it's better than being unprepared.

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alilyinthemoonslight - 2014-12-11 00:25 (UTC) - Expand

chalicejoker - 2014-12-11 14:35 (UTC) - Expand

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