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It's "Poke-eh-Mon," not "Poke-EEE-Man!"
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Mar 21, 2024 16:53:13 GMT
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Post by lordfhalkyn on Jun 3, 2018 20:48:08 GMT
An hour of smooth sailing later, the Taijiri Drive spits your ship out in the Sjofn system. 420 million kilometers (give or take) away, you see the red dwarf star of Sjofn burning itself down; the atlas says that it has an expected lifespan of another 30 million years or so. Its dim, red light suffuses the pilot's cabin; things will likely be dark on the planets orbiting the star. This suspicion is only confirmed as you arrive at Sjofn II; the planet is almost completely dark, save for a globules of light indicating the settlement. Clouds of sulfuric acid drift lazily across the surface, and the red light of the star glints weakly off the polar ice caps. As you approach, you are hailed by the planet below: "You have thirty seconds to state your business and transmit your identification. After that point, we will begin targeting procedures." The voice sounds rather bored, as if its owner would prefer to watch paint dry than do this job.
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Post by headlesskoko on Jun 7, 2018 17:38:22 GMT
"Understood, one moment please," Setsukko responded immediately, even as she fully meant to make full use of the time to prepare herself. In the 30 seconds given, Setsukko pulled up the ship's identification for herself to see. A couple more seconds to formulate what to say, then she sent the requested information. "This is Captain Hilda speaking. We wish to land and refuel on the planet." For now, that would do... and hopefully they will be given more time later to figure out some sort of believable reason for being in this middle of nowhere solar system.
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833 posts
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It's "Poke-eh-Mon," not "Poke-EEE-Man!"
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Mar 21, 2024 16:53:13 GMT
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Post by lordfhalkyn on Jun 7, 2018 19:09:13 GMT
The transmission is sent. The port official mutters to himself for a moment and says "Right. Bay five, Platform B. Follow the assigned flight pattern, blahdy blah blah you've done this before. You know what to do." The connection terminates with a click. On Setsukko's HUD, a dotted line appears in front of the ship, leading down to the settlement below. A simple enough flight for even the most novice pilot. The settlement itself is contained within a large, transparent diamond alloy, designed to withstand the unforgiving climate of the planet. The docking bays are built against the dome's wall, allowing for minimal atmosphere loss. Beyond, the settlement squats, low to the ground and largely built underground to take advantage of limited space beneath the dome; much of the aboveground space seems to be devoted to a thriving mining community. Beneath banks of sun lamps plant life tended by uplifted grass types spew life-giving oxygen to the settlement, the flora genetically altered to swallow and recycle harmful toxins. Great refineries dot the cityscape, belching vapors that stain the dome, despite efforts by drones to keep it clean. Beyond, lines of trucks bearing load upon load of precious ores enter the dome, while empty trucks leave, moving as quickly as possible to strip-mining operations beyond. In all, this is as dirty, grungy, and out-of-the-way as you can get. Perfect for someone with something to hide from the corporations. The trick, of course, will be to find that someone... and hope you're not the only ones looking for them. *** Meanwhile, in surgery, 451M0V has spent the trip extracting all the data this tracking blob has to offer, and as the ship lands and settles, he finally feels he has learned what he can. It's intriguing and worrying at the same time. It's impossible to nail down any one corporation that made this blob, or this ship, leading to the possibility that this is either off-the-books or a collaboration between corporations- and neither of those possibilities are mutually exclusive. Furthermore, this ship's computers may have more secrets than the initial sweep let on. They will require a more thorough scan. The blob, naturally, was unable to track the ship while the Taijiri Drive was in motion, though it was keeping an extensive log of what parts 451M0V was poking. Was is the important word; 451M0V disconnected that bit and now has it in an empty box Gordon dug up. It tried to escape twice, each time making it as far as the door before your Pokemon stopped it. After the second time, heat was found to be a slowing agent on the blob; Chell has been busy heating up unwanted leftovers and placing them on the blob. The heat causes the blob's electronics to melt, like any other computer, so it becomes lethargic to keep itself intact.
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Post by headlesskoko on Jun 10, 2018 23:55:00 GMT
Setsukko lands the ship safely, following the procedures by the book and getting a good look at the planet as she proceeded through the simple tasks. Even with the greenery of the artificially grown plants, the contained settlement felt grungy, dirty, and dreary. Once they're safely (hopefully) grounded, she leaves the seat to check in on what the nerds are doing, congratulating Mewtwo for a job well done on her way to the med bay.
"So...," the jack of all trades but not master enough to figure out what was happening with the leftover laden blob in front of her, "What have we got? Other than the blob being, apparently, turned into a dinner table?".
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Post by madandy on Jun 12, 2018 0:30:48 GMT
Gordon looks up from thoroughly examining the blob's physical consistency and cellular structure - that is to say, poking it with a surgical probe to see what happens - and shakes his head. "Well, ye got me. Data boy here could prob'ly tell ye about the electronic stuff but, from a biological perspective, all I can say it's a blob. Doesn't seem like it's meant to exist in the physical world, to be frank with ye. Barely has a physiology to speak of and it prob'ly wouldn't exist in nature. Then again, nature came up with Grimers and Dittos, so what the hell do I know?"
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Post by headlesskoko on Jun 13, 2018 0:29:51 GMT
"..." Setsukko attempts to catch the blob with a pokeball. Truly, she was an invaluable member of the research team.
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833 posts
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It's "Poke-eh-Mon," not "Poke-EEE-Man!"
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Post by lordfhalkyn on Jun 13, 2018 14:00:45 GMT
The Pokeball fails to energize and subsequently slurp up the blob. This tells 451M0V and Gordon that this thing isn't derived from a Pokemon such as Porygon, answering one question of this thing's origins.
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833 posts
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It's "Poke-eh-Mon," not "Poke-EEE-Man!"
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Post by lordfhalkyn on Jul 25, 2018 16:23:38 GMT
451M0V leans back for a moment, thinking. "For something like this to be able to exist both outside and inside of cyberspace, its body has to be derived from something capable of interacting with objects in cyberspace- like a Pokemon, and some humans. If Setsukko couldn't catch it, then it couldn't have been derived from a regular 'mon- either a regular 'mon, or a human... and I'm not sure which is worse." The Porygon's musings are interrupted by Mewtwo on the intercom: "Uh, there's a couple of customs guys outside. They, uh, they want Miss Hilda to answer some questions. What do I tell them?"
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Post by madandy on Jul 25, 2018 18:36:19 GMT
Gordon sighs. "Well, with Hilda gone, looks like we're gonna be needin' someone to look like the leader. Now, Dataface here's busy, slushhead's down in the kitchens doin' I don't wanna know what and me? Even I know that'd be stupid." He looks to Setsukko. "So, 'less you wanna let the livin' A-bomb a few months old do it, looks like the shit's rolled downhill onto ye."
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Post by headlesskoko on Jul 26, 2018 5:09:22 GMT
For getting the short end of the stick, or at least that's what Gordon made it sound like, Setsukko seemed completely unperturbed. In fact, it was the opposite. Her playful smirk returning, she waved off any concerns Gordon may have had and lightly replied, "Of course. They already know my voice as Captain Hilda's. Just play along with it, mmk?"
Shortly after finishing her explanation to Gordon, she pressed on the closest comms and reiterated the basics of what she said to Mewtwo, "Tell them I'll be on my way down shortly... and... In case they come up, I need you to either disguise or hide yourself. Understood? You might already know, but your existence is... problematic if discovered carelessly.".
Setsukko would only move from the comms after hearing an affirmative from the "livin' A-bomb" as Gordon so nicely put it. From the med bay, she walked to the ships entrance/exit and opened the hatch to greet the customs officials. "Hello, I'm Captain Hilda," Setsukko glibly introduced herself with a pleasant smile as she walked down the loading ramp, "I heard you had some questions for me?". Setsukko was banking her hopes largely on either successfully lying well enough to be believed or charming her company enough that they let the little suspicions pass.
Charm: QWTDDXvV3d6 Guile: roll=3d6]3d6
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Post by lordfhalkyn on Jul 26, 2018 14:41:34 GMT
Setsukko beholds a robot built to look like a human woman, only with a black screen instead of a normal face. The screen shows a pixelated green smiley face; the rest of the body is white, sculpted to resemble a dress. Sitting on the robot's shoulder is a bored-looking Snivy wearing electronic glasses and holding a tablet device. Setsukko knows the robot is a drone- one of the VALID-8 series of customs drones. It can't do much beyond asking questions and subduing unruly crewmen, which means the Snivy is the actual customs officer, and is the one who will judge your answers. VALID-8 says "Hello, and welcome to Sjofn! I am model 1234 of the VALID-8 series! I am here to ask you a few questions! Are you smuggling anything illegal onto the planet? Examples include, but are not limited to, corporate spies, military-grade weapons, equipment for establishing a pirate mine, and anything that rhymes with orange!"
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Post by headlesskoko on Jul 26, 2018 23:42:09 GMT
"Well, there might be a door hinge somewhere~" Setsukko jested as she leaned casually to one side, a hand resting on her hip, "But otherwise, no, I don't believe we have anything of that sort on our ship. Would you like to see for yourself?". Her words were, of course, directed to the Snivy, who she looked at for reasons more than just being polite. If there was even a hint of an advantage Setsukko could take to get on the Snivy's good side, she wouldn't hesitate to take it.
Of course, getting on one's good side required knowing the other party's name.
Straightening out of her lean, Setsukko stepped forwards with a hand out and open for a shake, "If you don't mind me asking, sir, what's your name?"
Guile cuz I failed to do it correctly befooore. GmJWINL13d63d6
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833 posts
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It's "Poke-eh-Mon," not "Poke-EEE-Man!"
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Post by lordfhalkyn on Jul 27, 2018 16:55:56 GMT
The Snivy peers over the top of its glasses for a moment, and then taps the back of VALID-8's head. The drone steps closer, almost into Setsukko's face, and as it stops, Snivy balances the tablet device atop the drone's head, climbs down its arm, and shakes Setsukko's hand- well, more like grab the tips of her fingers and shake them. "I'm Lawrence, but everybody calls me Larry," he says, scuttling back up to VALID-8's shoulder and retrieving his tablet. "Ignore VALID-8; it can't tell the difference between any answers you give." He taps the tablet for a moment, and then says "We'll need to scan your ship for any kind of corporate surveillance gear or unauthorized mining gear. Devon Corp. has been itching to get this place under its thumb for decades, and the Miner's Union doesn't like competitors. Scan's easy; we just put the scanner onboard and run it for about maybe ten minutes or so. Anything illegal we detect, we confiscate; otherwise, you'll be fine. Just let the port officials know when you're ready to go so they can open the dome."
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Post by headlesskoko on Jul 28, 2018 1:07:27 GMT
"Well, that sounds reasonable," Setsukko acquiesced without any complaint as she gently shook fingers/hands with the Snivy, careful to not throw the little sapient mon off by accidentally using too much force, "I think we're all ready to go, but I'll double check with my crew to make sure we don't have anything out that'll interfere with the scanner. I'll notify you through the comms when we're ready?".
While keeping up an amiable face, Setsukko tried to remember how customs scanners like these generally functioned. She recalled there were weapons of rather blatantly illegal nature on board, including bot not limited to the Mewtwo. Would it recognize biological weapons? What about all the unlicensed metal weapons? What was the general attitude towards those and what were the chances that the scanner would pick them up as well? This was important in determining how she would advance this conversation.
Tech ed for scanner detection: Ps5zOVZ93d6 Gen ed for the general attitude of customs towards not-so-legal products: 4d63d6·4d6
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Post by lordfhalkyn on Jul 29, 2018 3:03:58 GMT
Larry nods and directs VALID-8 to the side, using his tablet to contact someone on a video chat, letting them know they can bring the scanner out. He turns to Setsukko and says "They'll be up here with the scanner in about ten minutes." Setsukko Scanners basically act as x-ray machines used by customs agents for public transportation. It can be defeated by lead-lined containers and rooms; none of the containers you found aboard were lead-lined, and you're pretty sure none of the rooms are, either. It shouldn't find Mewtwo. There may be hidden, lead-lined compartments you're not aware of. If they find anything illegal, the standard procedure is as follows: the contraband will be confiscated, the ship impounded, and the crew arrested. The quality of the detention facilities vary depending upon the planet, from real posh to real dirty and disgusting. By the nature of this little mining colony, you guess its detention facilities tend towards the filthy end of the scale. You don't know what will happen if they find Mewtwo, and you're pretty sure you don't want to know. You have 10 minutes to figure out what to do...
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Post by headlesskoko on Jul 30, 2018 4:14:08 GMT
With a casual salute, Setsukko bades Larry farewell before turning and walking back into the ship. It's only after the hatch closes that she picks up the pace and speed walks her way to the infirmary, stopping only to communicate to Mewtwo and Chell through comms that everyone is to meet up at the infirmary for a quick meeting.
Once she arrives, Setsukko starts as long as the two doctors are present. "It looks like they'll be coming on board for a customs check. We don't have the time to look through everything, so we're just going to have to trust that Hilda knew what she was doing with the stuff that was already on board... As for... this..." Setsukko nods at the dissected computer program and then pauses as she thinks about what should be done regarding the virus. "Answer any questions the customs officials may have about it. Truthfully, but without revealing anything about Mewtwo. It was a tracking bug that we caught attached to our systems by some big corporations and we took the appropriate actions to take it down. There's nothing to fault us about that. Or does someone have a better idea?".
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Post by madandy on Jul 30, 2018 13:41:27 GMT
Gordon shrugs. "Claim it's a result o' Chell's cookin'? They'd believe it an' boy would I like to see his reaction." He shakes his head. "We'll tell 'em the truth. Heck, maybe they'd have some idea what to do about it."
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Post by headlesskoko on Jul 31, 2018 5:03:28 GMT
Setsukko nodded and then looked in the direction of the door to wait for Chell and Mewtwo to arrive. They'd need to be debriefed on the situation, too, if only a little bit in Chell's case. Though, Mewtwo would need to put in some actual effort to hide. Then, the rest of them could only hope that Mewtwo isn't discovered by accident and that, hopefully, Setsukko was right in thinking that this sensor couldn't detect living wmds.
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833 posts
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Post by lordfhalkyn on Aug 1, 2018 23:32:07 GMT
Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Chell is helping feed Mewtwo (navigating through the stars is hungry work.) Mewtwo's young age becomes quickly apparent to the chef, as it demonstrates trouble with solid foods and an inability to drink from a normal cup without spilling. Fortunately, Hilda seemed to have stocked up on baby dishes, but thee amount of food they hold is wholly inadequate for a creature of Mewtwo's size. He needs more than seconds- he needs thirds, fourths, fifths, and sixths.
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