maskormenace | 03

03 | Video

Hey, so, I got a question. Which is basically half of what this thing's used for, so I guess everyone's used to it by now.

[Jaime's sitting down in a chair in his room as he addresses the network, feet out of the frame and propped up on his desk. He raises his hand up to the screen, and it becomes clear that he's holding out a row of brochures like a fan, each and every one boasting the various virtues of various college campuses.]

I know a bunch of you guys are either in college or you're at least thinking about it, and I'm just wondering why. Not the usual reasons - of course I know everyone back home wants an education to get a job and all that, but why do it here? It'll be at least four years before most normal - [read: non-genius] - people get any payoff, and I know most people get Ported out by then.

[He puts the college brochures back down, sucking absently on the inside of his cheek as if trying to think of anything else to say and coming up empty, so he cuts the feed.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Of course. They're great and powerful. Their benevolence is absolute. I simply don't understand why there would ever be rebellions against them, like we're having at home.

I'm having problems telling whether or not you're being sarcastic over text

[Okay, so tact isn't his strong suit.]

[ She gives the non-answer that's consistent with her cover story: ]

I work for a magician back home, and there tends to be consequences for seditious talk. I respect and admire magicians.

Ah.

So hey, the word commoners is kind of old lingo where I'm from. How's this place compared to yours technology wise?

[ t's always disappointing when people don't get outraged. Outrage means she knows who her allies are; this doesn't tell her much. ]

It's 2005 where I'm from. And we're not so far behind all of this. Computers aren't nearly as popular as they are here, and we certainly haven't got hovering cars or the like, but we're about where these people were a few decades ago.

How's your home compared to this place?

2006. Pretty similar to this place computer wise and our cars don't fly.

Not really the point of my question though. That means you know how to make conversations on here private right?

[ A slight hesitation. Oh. That's something that can be done? She's figured out how to go anonymous, and how to contact people individually, but... ]

No. I didn't know you could.

[Annnnd he switches their conversation to private.]

It's on private now. Nobody can read this but us.

I can teach you how to do it. You're worried about guys from your world seeing you talking about them right?

[ Huh. Useful. That's - really useful. ]

That's part of it. How did you do this? Is this completely secure, or can people break into it?

[When Jaime does it, it's completely secure... but he can't give the encryption away to just anyone when the truly technologically savvy can use it to reverse-engineer a way to break into it. Sorry, Lizzie.]

People who know the normal amount about technology won't be able to hack into it. There's a few technological geniuses running around who probably can if they decide they care enough

Like who?

People like Tony Stark probably. He runs some big imPort tech company

But it's not like there's a list of names or anything. Even if there was it's their own business. It's just something to be aware of

[ Someone who runs a company doesn't seem like the sort of person she could trust...and if she pushes harder, it'll make her seem more suspicious. Too bad. ]

Thanks. I'll watch out for that. And thanks for doing this, too...You're right. It's mostly that it's not safe for me to talk.

No problem. I figured as much

If they come here, they won't have any more power than the rest of us so they shouldn't be able to do anything to you and we forget everything once we get ported back home but considering what you said I don't blame you for being cautious

Check your inbox in like ten minutes and I'll send you the instructions on making things private on here

[Which he does! Insert computery babble there!]

[ She waits for the instructions to come through before responding. This is excellent. Really helpful. ]

I just got them. Thank you. And thanks for being so helpful. Is there any way I can repay you?

Nah don't worry about it. I hope it helps

It does.

Anyway, sorry! This was supposed to be about your issue.

Aw don't worry about it. Your thing is more important anyway.

I mostly made up my mind when I posted this. I just wanted to hear how other people decided to tackle it

No university?

You got it. It's pretty obvious what I had already decided on

How about you? You want to take the opportunity and run? That's what a lot of people have been saying

[ Everything Kitty says is filtered through what-would-Lizzie-say, through the necessity of maintaining her persona. And yet there's a very real twist of sadness when she writes this, because it's true for Kitty, too, isn't it? And that's stupid, because she never would have walked a normal path like the one that teenagers here walk, but...She just wishes she lived in a normal place. She doesn't regret that she's spent her life fighting, but she does regret having had to fight. ]

I don't think I'd really be up to studying at a university. All I ever learned in school was reading, some maths, and how to sew and cook and fix a machine. That's not the sorts of things they learn there.

Oh right.

But would you be interested in learning more than you know now? Like the stuff they teach in schools? There are still options for people like you out there

[ Stop feeling sad and sorry for yourself, Kitty. What would you even have done with all of that, anyway? Knowing advanced maths and how to write poetry and a great lot of novels? That's all the sort of thing that's for some other life, a life you never lived and will never live. You've got obligations to your people and to your cause. There's no use sitting around and pouting about what-if-I-could-learn-poetry-instead. ]

I've got to spend most of my time working. I'm not going to register, so my jobs'll be rotten. I won't have time for that, I don't think.

Well give yourself some time to settle in and think about it again. It's not as if the opportunity is going to fly away unless you get ported out

What, so school isn't for you, but you're pushing it for me?

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