maskormenace | action || later audio

ACTION: Maurtia Falls
[Bad enough he wake up surrounded by soldiers again. Bad enough he wake up in a body that isn't his own, missing memories. No one shot at him this time, but it's a small comfort. Very small. As the soldiers are quick to deposit him in a big city.]

[And... surround him with people. Too many people. Way, way too many people.]

[He's not completely comfortable with this strange body yet, so when the young man with mismatched eyes -- one red, one green -- goes sprinting away from the porter, he ends up stumbling a few times. Once he even falls flat on his face.]

[If anyone's around to offer assistance, he just stares wildly at them, startled, awkward.]

[If they don't persist, he takes off running again, somewhere, anywhere away from all these people. Maybe if he runs far enough, Shadowmaru will return and make this nightmare end. He'd been trying to do the right thing -- he'd made a promise, he intended to keep it. Why is he being punished like this?]

[He'll eventually, if un-accosted, seek shelter in a park. Probably under a tree.]

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[Later on, after settling somewhat into realizing this won't change any time soon -- that he really is stuck here, Kagerou sets about poking at his comm device. He doesn't activate the video feed -- no, he's not comfortable with that yet. He just wants to figure out what's happening here.]

[He's almost talking to himself as he speaks.]

I don't understand this...

[That's all there is for a few moments. As if he's trying to determine the right thing to say.]

Why me? I'm nothing like a... like a "Hero". I've never helped a human being. And why should I? None of you have ever done anything for me.

Why should I be a "hero"?

Why should I do anything for human beings?

Whoever decided this -- whoever brought me to this place. You shouldn't have.

[He ends the call abruptly, right there.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It's a vegetable. It's good for you, and tastes good. [All right, that's subjective, but after seeing one newly humanized imPort get sick off junk food, Sabriel sees no reason not to set Kagerou on the path of proper nutrition.

And he's mimicking her actions, even if his stare is a bit... odd. Sabriel takes another bite and swallows.]

So? How does it taste?

[At least he didn't try to drink gasoline as a human. That probably wouldn't end well. Super Healing wasn't on his paperwork.]

It's... different.

[But, probably because he hasn't had anything to eat since he got here, the rest of the sandwich is basically inhaled. Maybe he doesn't understand all this human nonsense, but... hunger is hard to ignore.]

[Sabriel nudges the potato chips in his direction before starting on her soup, leaving most of her sandwich on her plate.]

Humans need to eat a few times every day in order to stay healthy.

... Kagerou, you haven't been here longer than a day, right? [Because if so, she really hopes someone's explained things like 'sleep' and 'bathing'... and get him another sandwich.]

That seems so inconvenient.

[He eyes the chips before prodding at them with a fingertip. Well that's a new texture.]

... no? Why?

You can eat those, you know.

Well, there are a few other things humans have to do every day. Like sleep and bathe. [She's sure everyone else will eventually explain about Russia and how imPorts are seen. For now, Sabriel will stick to more practical matters.]

What are they?

... We have to rest. I've never been 'dirty'. But I know to rest.

They call them potato chips here- they're fairly tasty

Good. Listen, if there's anything you need help with, or any questions- you can contact me through the communicator they gave you.

Potato... chips...

I'll keep that in mind.

[Sabriel reaches over and takes one, biting it in half.]

Has anyone explained the role imPorts play here? Or Russia's recent actions?

No. The soldiers said everyone had to be a hero. And...

I don't know what Russia is.

You don't. If you want, you can live a normal life.

Russia is another country- a powerful one, one that has been in conflict- but not outright war.

[And then Sabriel's tone grows increasingly angry.]

Until in January, until they declared that America was not controlling imPorts sufficiently, that we were dangerous weapons, and that they were going to 'confiscate' us. They used a Porter replica of their own design and the AI LACKEY to teleport about fifty imPorts onto a submarine in Antarctica where they were held in deplorable conditions for more than a week- until we finally rescued them.

[Even though he wants to say he doesn't know what it means to 'live a normal life', or that his version of normal is impossible here, he doesn't.]

[Because her description of these Russian things -- these humans -- trumps that. Specifically the words "controlling". "Confiscating". "Using." The rest fades to background noise. So much for all those words about being left alone. His fingers dig into the table's edge until they turn white.]

[I will not be captured.]

I am nothing to be confiscated. I am no one's property.

Not anymore!

You're not. None of us are, and I won't let them treat you- or me- or anyone else- like that. LACKEY was captured, and without them, Russia can't pull any tricks like what they tried to do- not without facing some serious retaliation.

... That's the AI you were talking about earlier. Isn't it?

Yes- LACKEY was made by the Russians to monitor- and kidnap- imPorts.

... And was locked up for doing what it was told.

It- they're still loyal to the Russians. If we let them go, they'll go back to them- and they'll keep using LACKEY to try to kidnap and use us.

Maybe they don't know there's any other option.

They might not think living their own life is something they can do.

The hostages were in communication with them while they were held captive. They tried to tell it that, and LACKEY dismissed it.

It's... very young, from what Magicman explained.

... Just because you're told it. It doesn't make it easy to believe.

Not when it goes against everything you've known.

I know. But until we can make LACKEY understand that, we can't set it free. Not when doing so puts hundreds of imPorts at the mercy of Russia.

Then someone should talk to them who understands.

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