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Fallout: Beyond Equestria 68: The Top of the World (part 10)

Scorch_Mechanic
Jan 15th, 2014
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  1. [2014-01-08 13:56:26] <Kkat> 3Bookwright "I guess your commander wasn't out there. So this is an airlock. You can operate it yourself, now that I've hacked it. Probably, anyways. This is the way the door is supposed to be opened, anyways.
  2. [2014-01-08 13:56:34] <Kkat> 3As the countdown changes from 27 to 26, Lieutenant Colonel Snowdrift flies into the room.
  3. [2014-01-08 13:57:04] <Kkat> 3Bookwright > Close External Door
  4. [2014-01-08 13:57:11] <Kkat> 3Bookwright "Ahh, you're just in time, Snowdrift. Behold the magic of science."
  5. [2014-01-08 13:57:19] <Kkat> 3The vault door slides up and bolts into place.
  6. [2014-01-08 13:57:26] <Kkat> 3Bookwright > Open Internal Door
  7. [2014-01-08 13:57:32] <Kkat> 3Noble_Heart looks up towards Snowdrift. "We trust your discussion with your superiors went well?"
  8. [2014-01-08 13:57:46] <Kkat> 3The grinding rumble andmetallic squeal return as a third of the metal floor splits, swings upwards, then slides bac, revealing a stairwell with a single purple light illuminating it.
  9. [2014-01-08 13:57:53] <Kkat> 3Snowdrift pauses a moment before answering. "Yes. Exactly."
  10. [2014-01-08 13:58:02] <Kkat> 3> Open External Door (Warning!)
  11. [2014-01-08 13:58:06] <Kkat> 3> Close Internal Door (Safe)
  12. [2014-01-08 13:58:14] <Kkat> 3Bookwright unplugs Shatara's pipbuck. "Alright, ladies and gentlecolts. Who's up for a bit of exploration?"
  13. [2014-01-08 13:59:38] <Kkat> 3Fallout: Beyond Equestria, Session Sixty-Eight: The Top of the World (Part Ten) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LETrhOP90p4
  14. [2014-01-08 13:59:47] <Kkat> 3--- Session Begins ---
  15. [2014-01-08 14:01:10] * CopyCat raises her Celestial hoof at Bookwright's question.
  16. [2014-01-08 14:01:33] * Bookwright nods. "Yes, the tall pretty one in the front?"
  17. [2014-01-08 14:02:02] * Golden_Dream frowns grimly. "I'd feel quite a bit better about explorin' if ah got m' shells back." She sniped. Ugh. She hated being this acrid all the time, but hell if she's gonna take being held hostage with a smile and a "thank you sir, can I have another?".
  18. [2014-01-08 14:02:54] * Noble_Heart nods her head. "We are prepared." She moved towards the stairs, looking down into the stairwell. "We shall lead the way." She began to descend the stairs.
  19. [2014-01-08 14:04:54] * CopyCat lowers her hoof. "Let us explore!"
  20. [2014-01-08 14:07:14] * Bookwright tilts his head. He looks annoyed at himself. "Oh. Right. Weapons. Forgot about those."
  21. [2014-01-08 14:09:11] <Kkat> 3Snowdrift orders most of her ponies to stay above, guarding the area -- particularly those who fared worst in the exchange with the windigos. "Major Bloodstreak. Wingmare Star Dust. You're with me." She turns to Bookwright. "Your discovery. You can have the honor of going first."
  22. [2014-01-08 14:09:45] * Bookwright continues smiling, but all of the color has drained from his face.
  23. [2014-01-08 14:10:17] * Bookwright "Er, ah, right. Yes." He lights his horn and steps carefully down the stairwell."
  24. [2014-01-08 14:11:17] * Noble_Heart steps aside to allow Bookwright to move ahead, following behind him. "We are concerned about potential security in this place." She frowns slightly as she moves down the stairs.
  25. [2014-01-08 14:11:36] * CopyCat turns to the enclave ponies with them, in particular the two they had helped with the Windigos. "Would you gallant sky knights care to escort us on our descent?"
  26. [2014-01-08 14:14:17] <Kkat> 3The stairwell leads down to a rather featureless metal door under a purple light. As Bookwright approaches the last steps, the door slides into the wall, revealing a small room and another door. In the room is a large locker, a coat rack and an off-blue floor mat that says "Welcome". A frame hangs on the wall with something inside.
  27. [2014-01-08 14:14:51] * Bookwright "After all we went through to get in here, it's nice to see they left the welcome mat out for us."
  28. [2014-01-08 14:15:57] * Noble_Heart tilts her head to one side. "That is unusual. We would wonder if someone is perhaps actually living here." She looks around the small room briefly, checking the frame's contents.
  29. [2014-01-08 14:16:19] * Golden_Dream eventually creeps down. "Shatara, Bookie, get on that locker." Ten caps said it was locked. "Noble, yer big and you ain't quite disarmed. Wanna knock t' find out?"
  30. [2014-01-08 14:19:23] * CopyCat nods at Bookwright. "That is nice. It's amazing what a bit of friendly decor can do for a place."
  31. [2014-01-08 14:20:03] * Shatara takes a moment to poke at the locker.
  32. [2014-01-08 14:20:11] * Golden_Dream checks under the doormat. Hey, you never knew.
  33. [2014-01-08 14:30:58] <Kkat> 3The locker is indeed locked. But it is a simple lock... Shatara might even be able to open it.
  34. [2014-01-08 14:32:10] <Kkat> 3Golden_Dream lifts the doormat to fine a small card with a crystaline edge.
  35. [2014-01-08 14:32:39] * Shatara curiously pokes at the lock with his talon.
  36. [2014-01-08 14:32:45] * Golden_Dream smirks. Always check under the doormat. She picks up the card and turns it around in her hooves.
  37. [2014-01-08 14:32:59] <Kkat> 3Noble_Heart looks at the badly-aged newspaper page in the frame.
  38. [2014-01-08 14:33:12] <Kkat> 3REFRACTIONS
  39. [2014-01-08 14:34:18] <Kkat> 3(The Crystal Empire's #1 source for investigative journalism -- breaking down all the news you need to know!)
  40. [2014-01-08 14:35:12] <Kkat> 3The page features the beginning of three articles, with associated picture:
  41. [2014-01-08 14:35:35] * Golden_Dream frowns. Say nothing. Say /nothing/. Say nothing about the crystal kingdom.
  42. [2014-01-08 14:35:55] <Kkat> 3Shining Armor Addresses Protestors at Solaris Weapons Factory
  43. [2014-01-08 14:36:11] <Kkat> 3followed by, in smaller columns...
  44. [2014-01-08 14:36:47] <Kkat> 3New Futures to Build New Facilities at Tragedy's End, Froggy Bottom Bog
  45. [2014-01-08 14:36:56] <Kkat> 3...and...
  46. [2014-01-08 14:37:28] <Kkat> 3Local Artist Unveils Controversial Armor Design for Roost Allies
  47. [2014-01-08 14:38:08] * Noble_Heart lets off a quiet 'hrm'. "A framed newspaper. Perhaps it belonged to those who worked here before the end. The crystal ponies must have had a hoof in the constrution or curation of this place." She frowned a little. "It would seem there's a story here about your home, Golden Dream." She looks down towards the smaller pony with a smile.
  48. [2014-01-08 14:38:32] <Kkat> 3Meanwhile, Shatara's poking at the lock causes the locker to spring open and assault his eyes with horribly garish colors.
  49. [2014-01-08 14:38:38] * Golden_Dream blinks. "What? Lemme see?"
  50. [2014-01-08 14:41:48] <Kkat> 3Inside the locker are also some small pictures duct-taped to the doors, a thick winter scarf, a plasma rifle and some ammo, and number of books, and two snowglobes. But Shatara can barely see any of that because of the armor.
  51. [2014-01-08 14:42:19] * Noble_Heart bent down to help GOlden Dream up enough to take a look at the newspaper clipping about Froggy Bottom Bog.
  52. [2014-01-08 14:43:38] * Shatara falls over onto his back, stunned amazing technicolor armor.
  53. [2014-01-08 14:43:44] <Shatara> stunned by the*
  54. [2014-01-08 14:44:02] * Bookwright "Ooh, ooh, whaddyafind, Shatara?" Bookwright rushes over to check out the Amazing Technicolor Dreamarmor
  55. [2014-01-08 14:44:18] * Golden_Dream jumps up and skims through the newspaper to find out what else it had to say about home.
  56. [2014-01-08 14:44:47] <Kkat> 3Brilliant purples and yellows, with slashing stripes of black and pink in a haphazard pattern that screams "modern art gone horribly wrong" cover the suit of experimental griffin power armor... made only slightly more garish by the semi-precious crystal accents.
  57. [2014-01-08 14:45:23] * CopyCat tries to shield her eyes. "Oh my, the sparkles!"
  58. [2014-01-08 14:46:13] * Bookwright gapes. He gawks. He goggles. The atrocity of haberdashery looms forward in his vision like some kind of mountain of bad taste.
  59. [2014-01-08 14:46:31] * Bookwright "...Shatara... It's... It's... IT'S SO YOU!"
  60. [2014-01-08 14:47:50] * Shatara blinks the sparkly out of his eyes, looking back at Bookwright upside-down like. "Wat."
  61. [2014-01-08 14:48:40] * Bookwright "Oooh c'mon Shatara totally you should put it on right now c'mon do it do it do it"
  62. [2014-01-08 14:51:08] <Kkat> 3The article about New Futures is a short one. New Futures, described as a venture in new energy by Crystal Pony scientists and inventors recently separated from Hippocampus, was apparently forced to shut down their research facility in the Crystal Empire some time prior to the article after the deaths of several dozen employees.
  63. [2014-01-08 14:52:52] <Kkat> 3The article is focused on reporting that New Futures avoided bankruptcy and had procurred new funding, allowing them to build two new research facilities. However, due to public outcry and the volatile nature of their research, the only places they were permitted to build was far away from civilization.
  64. [2014-01-08 14:53:25] <Kkat> 3Their new facilities are, as of the article, about to begin construction at Tragedy's End and Froggy Bottom Bog.
  65. [2014-01-08 14:53:57] * Shatara sighs a little and looks back at the armor. "I guess it wont hurt to try it..."
  66. [2014-01-08 14:54:58] * Noble_Heart frowns slightly and shakes her head. "Tis a shame the lives lost to poor choices during a time of troubles." She looks back towards the door once Golden Dream had finished reading. "Perhaps they are the reason for some of the strange things in the bog?" She moves up to the door and knocks on it with a forehoof briefly.
  67. [2014-01-08 14:55:17] <Kkat> 3The article adds an aside that the stigma against New Futures in the wake of so many lost lives was such that many Crystal Ponies believed the site of their Empire facility to be cursed, and even after being torn down, nopony was willing to purchase or build on that spot until the arrival of Solaris.
  68. [2014-01-08 14:56:21] * Golden_Dream was worried. Where would this thing have wound up being? It was at this point when the blinding disco colors of modern art made themselves known. "... Shatara, what the hell is that?"
  69. [2014-01-08 14:58:13] * Shatara unbuckles his harness and talon armor with a nervous glance across the others. "I...think it's power armor...that doubles as a distraction device..."
  70. [2014-01-08 15:01:18] * Noble_Heart looks over towards the ongoing conversation about... Something. Only to break out in a laugh. "It is... We would... Why?" She slowly calmed to a more regular chuckle. "Perhaps we shall be fortunate enough to find some paint somewhere? We could project something less terrible around it, but not in any permanent way."
  71. [2014-01-08 15:02:53] * CopyCat ponders out loud, "Perhaps Shatara could make it work?"
  72. [2014-01-08 15:03:27] * Golden_Dream snerks. No, don't you dare laugh. Don't you dare let them catch you- "PFFFF" She lost herself in giggle fits. "Dammit, Shatara, why ya'll gotta be like that?"
  73. [2014-01-08 15:04:32] * Shatara blinks at goldy, still kinda sprawled on his back. "Like...what?"
  74. [2014-01-08 15:05:12] * Bookwright shakes his head eagerly. "Ignore the neighsayers! I say it's perfect for you!"
  75. [2014-01-08 15:06:39] * Golden_Dream parks herself down from Noble's back. "Like, like... I dunno!" She tries to regain her composure. "Alright, alright. So, let's try th' damn door." Knock knock.
  76. [2014-01-08 15:07:20] * Noble_Heart chuckles a few more moments, taking up a position behind Golden Dream at the door. If someone was inside, they might answer. If not, they'd need to find whatever the opening mechanism was.
  77. [2014-01-08 15:10:10] * Bookwright "Shatara, this is /your/ suit. It was /made for you!/"
  78. [2014-01-08 15:12:31] * CopyCat smiles. "Try it on. Give us a spin! Before our escorts decide to confiscate it."
  79. [2014-01-08 15:13:40] * Shatara lets out a resigned sigh as he lets his talon armor fall away from his shoulders, looking over the powered suit and trying to figure it out.
  80. [2014-01-08 15:19:16] <Kkat> 3There is no answer to Noble_Heart's knocking.
  81. [2014-01-08 15:21:10] <Kkat> 3Star Dust ooohs at the armor softly. "Wow.... that's... something." Then asks softly, "Is it supposed to look like that?"
  82. [2014-01-08 15:22:29] <Kkat> 3Lieutenant Colonel Snowdrift grunts. "Dazzle Camouflage. Hate that stuff. Ponyfighting griffins in that armor is a pain in the flank. And the eyes."
  83. [2014-01-08 15:22:30] * Bookwright trots on over to the newspaper clipping and reads all of it. "...According to this, yes."
  84. [2014-01-08 15:22:35] * CopyCat tilts her head. "No answer? Are we sure the door is locked?"
  85. [2014-01-08 15:24:16] * Noble_Heart tilts her head to one side, checking for any way to actually open the door nearby.
  86. [2014-01-08 15:24:42] * Golden_Dream points at the newspaper article. "Yep. That'd probably be controversial alright." She wished she knew what the world "controversial" meant, but it felt right. She regretted leaving her dictionary behind. "I found a card thingy. Is there a thing I can do something with it with?" She'd only read about there being these slidy-key card readers in books. When she was little, before "magic" was an...
  87. [2014-01-08 15:24:44] * Golden_Dream ...acceptable answer, she wondered how something could read a plasticy card.
  88. [2014-01-08 15:28:15] * Bookwright "Hey, do any of you Enclave ponies have an iconograph? I want to preserve this, and I don't want to take it out of its frame until I have everything recorded on it."
  89. [2014-01-08 15:28:22] <Kkat> 3Shatara finds that the armor fits beautifully, but is difficult to move in properly. He's never had proper training in using power armor before.
  90. [2014-01-08 15:30:50] <Kkat> 3Noble_Heart, meanwhile, finally spots the little hole in the wall that upon close observation has a mechanical eye inside. A card reader, most likely, considering Golden_Dream's find.
  91. [2014-01-08 15:32:32] * Noble_Heart blinks and nods her head, looking dwon to Golden Dream. "Let Us see the card?" She reaches out to levitate the card from the smaller pony to let the card-reader read it. Presumably, this was how one opened the door. "We would wonder why so much storage is outside the facility. Perhaps there were restrictions on objects brought within?"
  92. [2014-01-08 15:32:59] * Shatara wriggles a little. "Uh...kinda awkward..."
  93. [2014-01-08 15:33:50] * Golden_Dream blinks. "Ya'll got it, Noble?"
  94. [2014-01-08 15:34:44] * Golden_Dream loosens her grip on the card in her mouth. She can float it out, 'cause screw trying to hoof something that flat over.
  95. [2014-01-08 15:35:03] * CopyCat smiles. "We were right. It does look good on you, Shatara."
  96. [2014-01-08 15:36:13] <Kkat> 3Shatara doesn't look so much like Shatara anymore... the cross-crossing stripes of black and pink, gold and purple, confuse the sense of shape and perspective until it's hard to tell exactly what you are looking at, much less who. But he's really colorful and shiny!
  97. [2014-01-08 15:37:16] <Kkat> 3Snowdrop sounds like she is frowning as she answers Bookwright, "I left my camera at home."
  98. [2014-01-08 15:38:35] * Bookwright "...crud. Oh well. It's safe enough to leave it here, I guess. Noble Heart, you got that door open?"
  99. [2014-01-08 15:39:05] <Kkat> 3As Noble_Heart floats the card before the robotic eye, there is a buzzing sound, and the door slides into the wall.
  100. [2014-01-08 15:39:35] * Noble_Heart smiles, lowering the card back to Golden Dream. "Yes. We have." She stepped forwards to check what was on the other side of the door. Being the first into potential danger was rather her thing, after all.
  101. [2014-01-08 15:41:17] <Kkat> 3Beyond is a room not much larger than this one. Nearly half of the room is taken up by a circular maneframe of a familiar design, within the center of which is a brain suspended in a liquid solution. The room would be without light, save for the luminescence of the suspension liquid.
  102. [2014-01-08 15:42:12] * Golden_Dream pokes her head into the room. "... Th' fuck?"
  103. [2014-01-08 15:42:46] * Golden_Dream steps into the room and looks at the brain in the jar. "Um. Can ya'll hear me?"
  104. [2014-01-08 15:43:08] <Kkat> 3In the low illumination, the ponies and griffin can see the skeletal remains of a female griffin collapsed under the minor weight of a helmet covered in gems and lights, wireds and cables leading to the "blank slate" maneframe.
  105. [2014-01-08 15:43:28] * Bookwright lights his horn again, addressing thin air: "Greetings to you. Are you operating, maneframe?"
  106. [2014-01-08 15:43:36] <Kkat> 3Also visible is a bed. And a small, open door leading to a bathroom.
  107. [2014-01-08 15:44:04] * Noble_Heart blinks a few moments, then frowns. She steps further inside and looks around slowly. "That is concerning." She looks down towards the remains and frowns. "It would seem that someone has attempted to slip death. We would wonder if they succeeded."
  108. [2014-01-08 15:44:55] <Kkat> 3After a moment, speakers come on in the room. A female voice speaks in a slow monotone.
  109. [2014-01-08 15:45:08] <Kkat> 3"23-5-5-8-22-18-3..." says the voice of the numbers station "...23-8-18."
  110. [2014-01-08 15:46:01] * Bookwright frowns. "I guess it didn't work. Or work correctly, at any rate. The voice is clearly female, so I suppose it at least worked partially."
  111. [2014-01-08 15:46:48] * CopyCat blinks at the sight of the strange room, but it is the floating brain which captures her attention.
  112. [2014-01-08 15:47:55] * Bookwright checks his notebook. "Same string. This is definitely the numbers station."
  113. [2014-01-08 15:48:28] * Shatara blinks and feels a small twange at the sight of the gryphon's remains.
  114. [2014-01-08 15:50:25] * Golden_Dream frowns. She decided that this had gone from mysterious to creepy in no time flat. "... Ya'll go and check th' bathroom for anythin' ya'll can use t' translate this." She looked at the body. "I'll, uh. I'll search th' body." She normally had no issue taking things off of dead bodies, other than the distant feeling that this was something that ponies a long time ago would find horrifying. But...
  115. [2014-01-08 15:50:26] * Golden_Dream ...she found herself mildly disturbed doing so this time.
  116. [2014-01-08 15:51:12] * Noble_Heart frowns and furrows her brow. "Perhaps she cannot communicate normally? If this system was meant to encode messages, perhaps encoding is automated?" She looked up at the maneframe and tilted her head to one side. "That might make sense, We suppose."
  117. [2014-01-08 15:51:18] * Bookwright 's brain is itching. "...Gaah, I can't take it!" He walks back into the antechamber and pulls out a notebook, copying down everything on the newspaper clipping.
  118. [2014-01-08 15:52:22] <Kkat> 3Major Bloodstreak looks about. "Well, it's clearly still relaying encrypted information. The question is from where, and who is it relaying it to." She adds, "Or was. With a pre-war facility, the chance that the intended recipient of these messages no longer exists."
  119. [2014-01-08 15:55:14] * Golden_Dream frowns. "Or maybe she knows we're here, something went wrong when she got brained into th' thing, and she can only talk in numbers." She could be screaming for help, and nobody would even know. She decided that was... Entirely to gloomy to dwell on.
  120. [2014-01-08 15:55:19] * Noble_Heart frowns. "Most likely to ponies operating in these mountains, We would imagine." SHe moves towards the bathroom to check what was within. She had doubts it would be useful, but as of right now she wasn't writing anything off.
  121. [2014-01-08 15:56:13] * Shatara feels compelled to search for some way to plug his pipbuck into the brainframe
  122. [2014-01-08 15:56:16] * CopyCat shudders at Golden_Dream's mental image.
  123. [2014-01-08 15:57:00] <Kkat> 3Golden_Dream finds little... a spent cigarette lighter, dogtags that have strange emblems on them, three gemstones the look to be of real quality, and a recharger pistol.
  124. [2014-01-08 15:57:42] * Bookwright scribbles furiously in the other room.
  125. [2014-01-08 15:58:35] * Golden_Dream took the pistol and sighed. "No ammo." She mentioned before tucking it in her saddlebag. She took everything else as well. "No journal. Found tags." She showed them to the Enclave ponies. "These look familiar?"
  126. [2014-01-08 16:00:13] <Kkat> 3Major Bloodstreak nods to Noble_Heart. "In theory, the Crystal Empire was somewhere in these mountains. The station could have been sending messages to them. Or possibly to ponies at the SPP tower. Or even the Roost... although I don't think this place could broadcast that far."
  127. [2014-01-08 16:00:47] <Kkat> 3Bloodstreak thinks a moment then gives a little stomp, "Unless it was using the SPP to increase its range!"
  128. [2014-01-08 16:02:12] <Kkat> 3Snowdrift looks at the tags. "One of these symbols is the symbol for The Roost. But I'm not sure about the other. Probably a family marking. Your griffin might know."
  129. [2014-01-08 16:02:41] * Noble_Heart tilts her head to one side. "That might make sense. But the door on the front looked distinctly Stable-Tec to Us. Most likely this was constructed by ponies. Though its evident the griffins knew of this place." She frowned and continued to check around the bathroom.
  130. [2014-01-08 16:03:16] * Golden_Dream shook her head. "It'd be unlikely, but..." She showed the tags to Shatara. "These look familiar at all?"
  131. [2014-01-08 16:03:31] * CopyCat looks around but is too dazzled to spot Shatara.
  132. [2014-01-08 16:04:19] <Kkat> 3There is a slight slant to the bathroom floor. Noble_Heart finds a trashbin full of discarded MRE wrappers, bottles and cigarettes. There is a medical box. And the sink and toilet seem in good order. There is a bucket in a corner next to a drain on the floor.
  133. [2014-01-08 16:05:22] * Noble_Heart checked over the medical box first. She had doubts about it still having anything useful. The bucket would be next. "It would seem that the one who perished here spent some time living here before making her final decision..."
  134. [2014-01-08 16:08:10] * Bookwright finishes writing the last few words and steps back in. "So, Noble Heart? Is our mystery griffin in there?"
  135. [2014-01-08 16:10:16] * Noble_Heart blinks. "Why would you as Us? We are not telepathic. CopyCat would be a better choice for such a question. We have no doubt that she was here for some time before utilizing the machine, however."
  136. [2014-01-08 16:10:39] * CopyCat takes a moment to stroke the brain's jar, a sad look of empathy on her face.
  137. [2014-01-08 16:11:09] <Kkat> 3The bucket is empty save for the remains of a fully-smoked cigar. The medical box holds a roll of magical bandages, and empty bottle of Chipper! (for relief of WSD depression), and equally empty bottle of whiskey.
  138. [2014-01-08 16:11:57] * Noble_Heart frowns, taking the roll of bandages for her bags and stepping back out of the bathroom. She shakes her head. "There are no clues We could find in there."
  139. [2014-01-08 16:12:23] * Shatara tilts his head at Golden_Dream's thingamajig.
  140. [2014-01-08 16:17:41] * Bookwright "Oh. Uh. Sorry, my brain tripped on itself. I meant 'Copycat'. Erm. So. CopyCat? Is anyone in there?"
  141. [2014-01-08 16:17:45] * Golden_Dream frowns. "It's some tags I found on th' Griffon over there. Th' Enclavers thought that one of these were some sorta clan symbol, and th' other were the symbol for somethin' called 'The Roost'."
  142. [2014-01-08 16:19:50] <Kkat> 3Shatara is able to recognize the first emblem as a family mark, telling which Clan the griffin belongs to. The second is indeed the symbol of The Roost, a major griffin stronghold on the edge of Equestria during the war... back before the Enclave wiped it out. Now, the old fortress has become the town of Darkness Falls.
  143. [2014-01-08 16:21:19] <Kkat> 3Shatara has also spotted a port to plug in a PipBuck on the Blank Slate maneframe.
  144. [2014-01-08 16:21:46] * CopyCat slowly turns to Bookwright. "If she was here she's long forgotten herself. All this mind knows is numbers. I do not believe it even knows what they mean."
  145. [2014-01-08 16:22:21] * Bookwright is crestfallen. "Maybe we should turn off life support then."
  146. [2014-01-08 16:22:43] * Noble_Heart frowns and looks at the brain, tilting her head to one side. "That is a sad day indeed." She bows her head and sighs quietly. "We should see what else can be gleened from this place, before We make any more decisions."
  147. [2014-01-08 16:23:02] * Shatara tries to plug in as he adresses Golden_Dream. "I think it's some kind of family crest..."
  148. [2014-01-08 16:23:24] <Kkat> 3Star Dust joins CopyCat in stroking the brain's jar sadly. She doesn't feel what CopyCat has sensed, but is just saddened by the sight of this. To CopyCat, "But... she changes them often enough. The message changes. Sometimes it takes months. Once it was twice in a day."
  149. [2014-01-08 16:24:46] * Noble_Heart nods her head. "We believe that determining what the numbers mean is important before We make any choices concerning this place."
  150. [2014-01-08 16:25:15] * Bookwright nods. "We're in the central room. Perhaps we can find the cipher in here somewhere."
  151. [2014-01-08 16:25:58] <Kkat> 3Shatara find plugging in easy. There is very little to access from this port, but there is no extra security.
  152. [2014-01-08 16:27:50] * CopyCat tilts her head at Star Dust. "Have you been keeping track of those messages?"
  153. [2014-01-08 16:27:52] * Bookwright steps up next to Shatara. "I can help, if you want."
  154. [2014-01-08 16:31:10] <Kkat> 3Shatara pokes at the maneframe with his PipBuck. For his efforts, he gets a ping as the PipBuck alerts him that a new location has been marked on his map. A moment later, his PipBuck's screen goes blank, then starts filling with text: We never die alone. We never die alone. We never die alone. We never die alone. We never die alone. We never die alone...
  155. [2014-01-08 16:31:50] * Bookwright grabs the plug with his telekinesis and yanks it.
  156. [2014-01-08 16:32:32] * Bookwright "Well, that was bizarre and frightening."
  157. [2014-01-08 16:32:35] <Kkat> 3Bookwright yanks the plug from the port. The PipBuck starts a forced reboot.
  158. [2014-01-08 16:33:20] * Noble_Heart looks up at the brain and frowns, sighing quietly. "We would like to help somehow. But right now We are not certain how."
  159. [2014-01-08 16:33:54] <Kkat> 3Star Dust notes softly, looking at the griffin skeleton, "She died alone."
  160. [2014-01-08 16:34:22] * Bookwright "Hmm. I wonder if the ciphered broadcast changed. If it's the right number of groups, I think I can decipher it."
  161. [2014-01-08 16:35:08] * CopyCat nods at Star Dust sadly.
  162. [2014-01-08 16:35:31] * Bookwright turns to Get Lost. "I think Shatara just got locked out. Do you think you can break the lockout?"
  163. [2014-01-08 16:36:00] * Noble_Heart tilts her head to one side. "Perhaps she is sad to have been left here without anyone..? Or to have abandoned someone else." She shook her head. "We cannot be sure."
  164. [2014-01-08 16:37:40] <Kkat> 3Get_Lost tries to access the Blank Slate maneframe. "Sure."
  165. [2014-01-08 16:39:15] <Kkat> 3Get_Lost smiles. "Success!" (Take that, failure-mark!)
  166. [2014-01-08 16:45:06] <Kkat> 3Get_Lost backs out a little later. She turns to Bookwright. "The station is getting messages from a place called Tragedy's End. I couldn't get much more than that though. Sorry."
  167. [2014-01-08 16:45:47] <Kkat> 3Get_Lost then turns to Shatara. "That was the pad. 'We never die alone.' Over and over. It changes a lot, but for now, that's the pad."
  168. [2014-01-08 16:46:08] * Bookwright nods. "Okay. Thanks. I'll start deciphering now."
  169. [2014-01-08 16:46:31] * Noble_Heart frowns. "Then it seems that we have a new destination soon." She sighs quietly. "We are uncertain what else to do here, however."
  170. [2014-01-08 16:46:47] <Kkat> 3Get_Lost sits down, smiles at being useful. She shuts off her eyes for a while.
  171. [2014-01-08 16:47:04] * Bookwright pulls out his notebook and starts doing non-carrying math.
  172. [2014-01-08 16:47:06] * Golden_Dream sighs. "Are we sure that's where we're goin'?" She looks at the Enclavers.
  173. [2014-01-08 16:47:31] <Kkat> 3Snowdrift looks to Bloodstreak, who quickly replies, "On it!"
  174. [2014-01-08 16:49:08] <Kkat> 3Snowdrift then looks to Golden_Dream. "Not right now. Your next stop is our forward base. After that... we shall see." She then muses, "Tragedy's End..."
  175. [2014-01-08 16:49:27] * Noble_Heart looks to Snowdrift. "Is it a place you know something about? A name you have heard before, perhaps?"
  176. [2014-01-08 16:50:37] * Golden_Dream feels a twinge of horror take her. "What do ya'll mean 'on it'?"
  177. [2014-01-08 16:51:10] <Kkat> 3Lieutenant Colonel Snowdrift nods. "Far end of Crescent Moon Canyon. Right up against northern zebra lands. Great place to set up surveillance if you cared what the stripes were doing."
  178. [2014-01-08 16:52:11] * Golden_Dream frowns gravely. "... Didn't there used t' be a schoolhouse?" She murmured.
  179. [2014-01-08 16:53:00] <Kkat> 3Snowdrift chuckles. "If you're headed that way, you can't miss it."
  180. [2014-01-08 16:53:55] * Noble_Heart frowns and nods her head. "We see. Then it is likely on Our path in either case."
  181. [2014-01-08 16:57:58] * Bookwright looks up from his notebook. "That was definitely the cipher. The full message is 'SCAVENGERS IN THE NEST HORIZONS GLOW IS NOT THE SETTING SUN'."
  182. [2014-01-08 16:58:41] <Kkat> 3Blookstreak nods her power-armored head, concurring.
  183. [2014-01-08 16:59:08] * Bookwright "...wow. That's really creepy. Gonna guess that 'nest' refers to the griffin's home, and 'horizons glow is not the setting sun' is clearly a reference to the detonation of a balefire bomb. So who are the 'scavengers'?"
  184. [2014-01-08 17:00:31] * Golden_Dream frowns. She's gonna have to try to lean the Enclavers away from trying to go there. "Not like it matters anymore, anyway. Probably dead or gone now."
  185. [2014-01-08 17:01:12] * Noble_Heart blinks and frowns. "What makes you believe that is clear? We could see that being a reference to many other things. Including fire." She looked towards Golden Dream. "Doubtful. If the message has been changing, it is likely that this Tragedy's End remains functional."
  186. [2014-01-08 17:02:01] <Kkat> 3From outside and up the stairs, Major Tripwire answers Bookwright, "That's easy. Whatever's been feasting on the corpse of the zebra lands."
  187. [2014-01-08 17:03:11] * Bookwright "What? That doesn't make any sense. 'nest' is clearly a griffin term, why would it refer to the zebra lands?"
  188. [2014-01-08 17:03:23] * Golden_Dream shoots Noble a glare. Come the fuck on, Noble, you're smarter than this.
  189. [2014-01-08 17:03:38] * CopyCat shudders. "I don't like the sound of that."
  190. [2014-01-08 17:05:12] * Bookwright sighs, and puts away his notebook. "Okay. So I want to ask you all: Should we turn off the maneframe?"
  191. [2014-01-08 17:06:32] * Noble_Heart frowns and sighs quietly. She looks down to Golden Dream, then back to Bookwright. "We do not like the idea of abandoning her here to suffer like this. But We are uncertain that shutting down the maneframe would be a significant relief either."
  192. [2014-01-08 17:06:58] * Bookwright "Whatever we decide, we should bury her. She deserves it."
  193. [2014-01-08 17:07:33] * Golden_Dream looks at the brain. "Brings up an interesting point of philosophy. Can we really call that somethin' like that a sapient, sentient thing?" Yeah, okay, she knew some five dollar words.
  194. [2014-01-08 17:07:34] <Kkat> 3Major Tripwire looks down from above. "You said it yourself. Nest mean's home, right? Home for the source of this information would be Tragedy's End, right? So whatever... or whoever... has been down past Tragedy's End has finally made it up this far."
  195. [2014-01-08 17:09:12] * Golden_Dream looks at Noble. "I don't think that's her. I think that's somethin' closer to a computer than anything."
  196. [2014-01-08 17:09:28] <Kkat> 3Tripwire grumbles. "Probably whatever drove the fucking windigos this way."
  197. [2014-01-08 17:10:17] * CopyCat looks down. "I don't like the sound of that either."
  198. [2014-01-08 17:10:26] * Bookwright accedes. "You're probably right."
  199. [2014-01-08 17:10:30] <Kkat> 3--- End of Session ---
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