bottlebay | ♠ audio, 01

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♠ audio, 01

[ Perrin is still suffering from the nightmares, mind you, with this being the last day of them. So that's why this message first goes out quite late at night. Oddly enough, the message seems quite focused, though. Perrin knows how to handle his brain. But his voice is choppy, each word practiced. There's also a slight echo. (In real life, he is saying each word out loud before saying it in telepathy.) ]

--didn't know being a psyker was something technology could help with. Which is pretty impressive.

I know those were real people. Pokemon? Those guys who vanished. It's not like when I see people and then I'm the only one seeing them.

I know the doctor said they'd keep records, but we should too. Keep our own, I mean - and we can also figure out if there's a connection between us. First thing's first.

Where are you all from? I've heard that not all of you are American. Or from the same time as me - oh, that's right. I'm from the year 2281. [ Oops, his thoughts are spiraling. He's not saying this part out loud in real life, anymore. And sounding more casual. ] You know, it's pretty fascinating to meet people who are pre-War. I would have thought you would have been a lot weirder, but you're just like me. Without the survival instints, I mean. I wonder if it's true that people were just the same, and it was the governments and corporations that wanted to mess stuff up. Oh, but they didn't cause the Resource Wars, the lack of resources did... sometimes wish I'd read more up on history. I mean, pre-War history. Not just shit that happened near to me.

[ He seems to have forgotten this is telepathy and his thoughts are being broadcast for a while. Until-- ] Oh. Right. So I'm gonna be keeping a list of us. Uh, in a book. We don't have terminals here, and terminals could get messed up if some of the electricity messed up or if we forgot the password. And I'm not the best hacker. I'm also not the best at lockpicking, honestly.

So! Guess this is me asking about your home and what year you're from!

[[ This post can also be used as a mingle post, if wanted! The OOC post for the record keeping is here. Perrin will let anybody check it out, which is why he hasn't listed his real name in it. ]]

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[ Blink blink. ]

Well, they're only books the Followers already have. And communist ones. Which is a lot of them, to be honest.

[ one: the machine thinks all books are communist. two: perrin you're technically a communist. ]

Phew.

[Okay he'll tolerate clearing dupes out.

But.

He cannot. Ignore that bit.] ............how could there be...that many 'communist' books..?

[Not to say what he thinks on the topic itself but uh, that's a surprising topic to have a lot of books on!]

[ Perrin pauses. Tilts his head like a confused puppy. ] Well, th'machine helping me with it said all books are pretty much communist. Too many ideas that the reds might also have.

[ you are so glad this is in-person and not though telepathy. because imagine his rambling then. ]

Then again, he's probably a bit biased. But who isn't.

[Emporio blinks.

And then blinks again.

And squints.] ....can you define 'communist' for me?

[SUSPINCH]

[ Uh.

Fuck. He crosses his arms. He closes his eye, his tail swishing a little. He really has to think about it. ] Well, it was the commie threat from China, mostly, that began the Resource Wars since their sharin' with all their people caused us to run out of oil. So they're the baddies. Probably fired the first nukes.

But as for communism itself? Well, they're bastards that corrupt peoples' minds and fuck them up, to weaken the American way. [ ... ] Uh, not the NCR way, the actual American way.

[Emporio just. Has to cover his mouth for a moment.

Is he hearing this? He's hearing this. Holyshit, he's hearing this.

Where does he Even Begin-

No wait he knows where to start. Emporio takes a deep breath.

And also moves takes his helmet off to move Perrin's pearl immediately out of reach. To be safe.]

The definition of 'Communism' is as follows.

The creation of a society without need for private property, social class, money, and 'state'; a society that becomes self-governing, focused on distribution of goods according to the needs of everyone within society. The people become able to support each other, without being beholden to a higher power.

...That's the idea, at least. I won't lie, and tell you that at least by the time I was born, it was a political ideal that was abused; most of the time what happened was the lower and upper classes still existed, with the people on the bottom being given bare minimum amounts compared to those on the top- but that's getting into a lot of detail that might not really matter here.

The point is...I don't think nearly as many books would have been about 'communisim' as you think. At least not if your country hated it enough to make comments like that, [he adds dryly. Don't make him break out the Cow Chart.]

...There's a lot more I can unpack here, but I think it might be better to ask yourself a few questions first.

The biggest one- because...most people definitely won't see the people you call 'baddies' as that, [Delicately put, pat yourself on the back Emporio,]

How many people does it take to fire a weapon?

[He looks up- up, and up, at a dragon who looks large enough to swallow him whole. One of the strangest aspects of being a pokemon, perhaps.

He looks up with severity in his gaze.] At least where I came from...China had the largest population of people on the planet. I can't speak for what 'sharing' entailed, but something tells me they weren't actually sharing that much. More than that, it wouldn't take over a billion people to make that choice; and I don't think they'd bother asking if over a billion people agreed with it either.

['Don't blame the country, or its people', Emporio doesn't say.]

The next one...What 'is' the American way? ...because I can't speak for your America either. I can only speak for mine, the way I can speak for the world I knew. I don't even know what the 'NCR' is- which means most likely...it didn't exist when I did.

But I at least know what a pattern in history looks like- and...a lot of what you're saying sounds familiar.

[...But, that's perhaps why he's having trouble saying this next part.]

...but America lied, back then. Maybe that isn't the case for you but... [He shakes his head.] If I'm being honest, a lot of what you just said felt like something that was said half a century before me.

[Which. He hopes he doesn't have to explain why that's bad!]

[ Who are you, that do not know your history?

Those words seem to echo though Perrin, as he listens. Perhaps it is because he feels his eyes on him, from afar, always watching. Even now. Judging. And Perrin feels ignorant, as ignorant as those from the Old World, those who simply destroyed things.

He is quiet. You notice his single eye closing, a simple sigh coming out. A silent apology to a man not here. (For there are no men here, are there?) But he still repeats it, quietly. ]

Who am I, that I do not know my history?

[ It is said in an oddly nostalgic way, before he tries to appear calm again. ] Maybe it was a lie. Maybe not. The closest to the American Way I know is from the NCR-- Uh. [ Right. ] New California Republic. And I decided those guys didn't know what's best for the Mojave Wasteland. [ There is a lot left unsaid, as he still feels those invisible eyes on him. ]

[ There's a little pause. ] The NCR aren't the remnants of the American Government who took part in the Great War, mind you. But... they follow the same ideals. But that's what we have records of - all th'way up until 2077. And from those who survive on.

Edited 2025-02-11 09:02 (UTC)

[It's a question that resonates. Emporio finds himself slowly nodding his head.

Tale as old as time, for the USA, isn't it?]

...I think that's a problem a lot of Americans had. That's not really most of the people's fault; it's the responsibility of those in power, those who can teach, to teach their people otherwise after all. I guess, what matters here is...

...We're both in a different world now. And all of us here are just...'people', of some sort, trying to survive like you've been. No matter where we came from.

We all live here now.

[he can hear a nightmare

h i s s i n g

be

hi

nd

him]

So...whatever was real, whatever wasn't, I guess...

[h

i

s

s

i

n

g]

...at least now you know what 'communism' actually means? ...And I'm sorry about any books that might have been good to read, that got ruined.

"Whatever was real, whatever wasn't, we're all here now"... But what about the people who didn't make it over...?

[ The Mimikyu sounds like he might have missed a bit too much sleep.

Also hi, the Mimikyu is here now. When did he get here. He has himself propped in a corner like a tired ragdoll. ]

...Is using the Pearls important for this survey shit? I do not trust myself on a mental connection right now.

Edited 2025-02-11 09:38 (UTC)

[ They're stuck here. Good or bad. Perrin knows he just needs to... do his best. Not be like who he is and--

Oh! Their other roomie! His voice grows casual again, trying to CHANGE THE SUBJECT. ]

Well, no. I just thought it'd be better t'not stand out in th'center of town and call out us wanderers. We already stand out a lot.

Courier Six is the one taking record, so you can just tell him here at least.

[He's trying not to think about the question that Ring Spirit came in with. Or, well. Revealed himself with, rather. He's pretty sure the mimikyu has been there since he started monologuing dictionary definitions. But, he's trying very hard not to think about that question on people who...Didn't make it.]

In hindsight I don't think any of us should be using the Pearls right now. I don't think anyone's been sleeping enough for it.

[Which, for all that he opened that one up, he does hope neither of them point out that that's likely His fault, having screamed a few times in the night.

He is also ignoring the fact that his hallucination is doing that for him. Shut up. Buzz off.]

Mn, I'm surprised everyone's having nightmares... wonder if there's more reason than coincidence behind it... hm.

[ After sinking into thought for a few moments, he rouses himself with a light bap to his "head" with his tail-stick. ]

Right, right - ah, last place I remember being was Japan, and... I have no idea about the year. I lost track of that... last I thought to check it was sometime in the 1990s, but I know that more time passed.

I'm actually from Kemet, though. Usually called 'ancient Egypt' nowadays, but the place is 'Kemet'.

[ With a bit of a snort. ]

Yeah, well. We did get turned into these things. But man, I wish we had something to help with the sleep. There has to be an ability or move - since I haven't seen any goods that might help. [ why are there no drugs ]

But yeah, I'll note that down - and, hey. I'm not actually from the Mojave, it's just where 'm stayin' right now. I'm from, uh. Nebraska. Still in America. [ He is. Hesitating to write right now, though, his claws shaking a little. ]

It didn't seem like a problem for most people earlier...

[most,]

Huh, the 90s... ...oh. I wanted to ask about that but...do you know which dynasty in Egypt? The actual time scale on 'ancient Egypt' is one of the longest there is, civilization-wise.

[He pauses, looking between the two. Maybe they should have Perrin invest in step-ladder chairs, just for them.] ...I'm still from Florida.

...Do you want to go over this later though?

[He did not miss the shaking.]

Last year of the reign of Akhenamkhanen, may his corpse rot.

[ Here he'd spit, except he doesn't actually know how to do that in this body, and so the floor is spared.

He just mumbles to himself, voice distorting, as Emporio tries to attend to their housemate. ]

W̷̟̄o̵̤͂u̸̲͘ĺ̴̹ḓ̸͒ ̵̰̑ĥ̵̬a̸̡͛v̸̟̄ė̸̫ ̶̯̾b̴͎̓ẽ̸̢ê̴̯n̷̢̄ ̴͓̑t̴͎̎h̵̤̓ę̴͆ ̴̮̌l̵̡͐a̸̯͗š̸̲ṫ̸͉ ̸͔̕ẙ̴͈e̸̻͛ả̸̘ȑ̶̟ ̸͙͘ỏ̵̬f̶̮͐ ̶͉̈́ȧ̷̦ņ̶̇y̸̛͍t̵̪͝h̵͎̎i̷̮͝n̶̮̓g̴͖͐ ̸̟͘i̷̦͝f̷͔͠ ̴̐͜Ȋ̴̮'̸̨́d̶̜̈ ̴̡͒h̴͗ͅȁ̷̫d̷̻͒ ̵͓͊m̴̞͑y̸͙͊ ̶̰͋ẅ̸́͜ä̷̖́ẏ̷̢.̴̻̿.̵̝̓.̸͍̐

[ Perrin has no clue when that is. He does wave a claw, though, before slumping down to sit a tiny bit. ] Oh, don't worry. I'm just usually higher then this, when I'm pullin' all-nighters.

[ Still, there was a bit of an interested look in his eye, yet Perrin masked it quickly. ] Didn't like that guy, huh? I've been there. Recently. Very recently.

Actually, I kind of thought you were stressed.

[If you're just high then, very well.

Uh.]

...Hm.

...It...sounds almost like 'Akhenaten'? But that's definitely not the same name. I guess he didn't reign long then.

[WRONG]

That or we just don't have the same kings in that history...maybe I would've been better off asking what he was buried in.

[Touchy about the monarchy though huh.] I get the feeling any monarchy inspires that response.

H-heheheh... you're not wrong I'm no fan of monarchies, but our glorious Pharaoh was s̴̳͗p̶̦̈́e̶͚͠c̵͈̋î̵̭ä̵͎l̷̙̓ in that regard...

[ He won't elaborate on why just yet, because Emporio has Activated him by mentioning something he enjoys discussing much more: royal tombs! He perks up. ]

His tomb was carved into the bedrock in the Valley of the Kings, and had some of the most fun traps I've had to work around in a while - among the first traps in the antechamber was a narrow bridge above a chasm, with giant swinging pendulum blades... used that one to kill the chief of the tomb guardians on my second visit~. You'd think he'd know his tombs better, but apparently not!

Oh, well, if I had some Mentats I wouldn't be so fucking stressed--

[ You know, there's a pause, before: ] Man. You know, that's what you get when you only study old plans or think y'know your way around. Why, I knew this guy who thought he knew all the traps in the casino he wanted us to rob - long story [ he said, as he put a claw to his neck, ] - but he didn't know the final one.

And that was his downfall. Not his death, though. Nah. [ Oh Perrin is looking almost too amused. Forgetting he's around strangers. One of them a child. ] Bein' trapped forever with the treasure he wanted was th'best punishment of all.

[First, to Perrin-] ...Oh. You are stressed, then.

[Well he stands by what he said then! Now, the Ring Spirit.]

So, probably around the 18th dynasty th...

[Hold that thought, what the Heck Ring Spirit??

s...swinging what

What in the wh]

....actually on second thought, your tombs seem more advanced. So I probably can't gauge the year at all.

[At least in Perrin's case he can't well be surprised. They probably have the technology by That point. To that end he just nods. Sucks to be that guy!]

I think I read about something like that. ...that was a fiction book though.

[ What, weren't the Hollywood death-traps of ancient Egypt real in every universe?? ...No? Lame.

To that end, he's greatly amused by Perrin's tale. ]

H-heheheh, "letting the door shut behind you"... that's the most basic trap a tombrobber could face. Village -

[ He wavers then, before starting the sentence over. He's more subdued though - mournful. ]

...Village used to make fun of people who went out that way.

[ Oh. Perrin notes that mood drop, and he hears whispers from his nightmares again. That's what he causes, isn't it. Still, he tries to remain sounding as casual as before, still twitching. ]

...Good people?

[ He doesn't want to probe too much, though. Or questions might turn on him. ]

[Ah, he gets the feeling this is no longer his conversation he supposes. Emporio looks between the two again, fidgeting on the spot.]

...I'm not sure that part's important, [He finally says quietly.]

If they were important, and they're gone, that's more important isn't it..?

[ The Ring-Spirit cackles. Emporio gets it! ]

Mn, they weren't "good" at all~. More like "a plague upon the land", h-heheheh... all thieves and tombrobbers, you see. It's why our good Pharaoh picked us, after all... He needed a sacrifice. Needed ~unwanted~ people for his fancy arts-n-crafts project.

I lived with their still-screaming souls for 3000 years.

...And then what does he do. Doesn't even wave his hands, just vanishes 'em. No problems here! No harm, no foul! Nothing to see! Pharaohs never done a-ny-thing wrong!

[ He laughs again, and this time it's more than a tinge hysteric. It's probably a good thing he's not using his Pearl right now.

He knows now it was more complicated than just "the Pharaoh said 'do it'" but... he doesn't care. Especially with what ended up happening to the Items. It matters even less to him if the pharaoh who ordered their creation and the pharaoh who unmade them were different guys - the Pharaoh's the Pharaoh. ]

They were still there! When I disappeared, I wound up here! But where are they? What happened to them?!

cw 1950s attitude about communism--

[emporio voice] YOU DONT EVEN KNOW WHAT THAT WORD MEAAAAAAAANS

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cw sinophobia, 1950s attitudes

yah killin him perrin Also to be safe uhhhh CW for. Discussion of communism and nuclear war?? weeps

same for all the CWs above also lonesome road spoilers

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[action in Lum]

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cw drug mention

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cw mention of murder?

cw drug mention/murder mention/spoilers for dead money

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1/2

2/2 (ig cw death mention)

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cw: mention of mass murder/human sacrifice