Hot Honey Tunnels and Something Black and Strong from Earth

[5:43 AM] tangledThespian: (( @EL , lets do this shit.))

Once upon a time(just a sweep or two actually), in a land far, far from home(according to the most ancient highbloods, anyway), a young goldblood with a shock of curly hair and overalls paces like a nervous sentry around Maintenance Hatch 2C. Though of course it isn't nerves, that would be unthinkable. What kind of wiggler gets stage fright when she's got a date with the freaking heiress any minute now? It's just that she-

She pauses. Hold up. Reverse. Scratch that, make a mental note to never ever use the words 'heiress' and 'date' in a sentence together again. There's coy banter, and then there's shoving your boot in your mouth. Don't screw up now. She'd worked hard to land this opportunity. And then even fibbed a little to seal the deal. Only a touch.

Speaking of-these contacts itch. It takes conscious effort to keep herself from pushing up her goggles to rub at her 'newly mature' duo-colored eyes. She could screw up the ruse or worse-set off one of the triggers she built into her gloves. Yeah, that'd be a fine test run for the new electromagnet, zapping an eyeglobe. She makes another mental note: figure out a way to make wearing contacts more comfortable.

[10:55 AM] EL: Second of three, that's a bridge between one third and two thirds since it's in progress. Three of three, she can mark off the gold on the rainbow sheet inside the front cover of her diary she made to note whether or not she understands what a given caste does.

The heiress adjusts her beret and gets moving, she's late and she knows it, she should've picked out her clothes the day before. She only gets one first impression, and she bites her tongue that it's gonna be of someone that's late.

Right, so she's meeting up with someone that works in one of the maintenance hatches, she needs to get moving down there and oh god she's sorry she didn't mean to trip you over!

She apologized profusely as she moves on, because well time is of the essence! Always trolls to meet, things to learn, she's learning about the lesson of not being late, again. Gah why couldn't she have learned it the first time?!

She hopes the troll waiting for her isn't the cross, stern type. They'll be mad that she's late, but well she's also the heiress and they'll still walk on eggshells around her, but it's like angrily stomping on eggshells while trying not to break them and it's all just gone to pieces before it started, metaphor and meetup both.

She runs over into Maintenance Hatch 2C, looking for the goldblood she's supposed to be meeting.

[5:22 PM] tangledThespian: The goldblood in question is busy sneaking a peek at her watch. Is it just because the mechanic had her show early, or is it late? ..Nah, late. Why is it she's always expected to be somewhere five minutes early with bells on when the highblood's usually show fashionably late anyh-eeeey that's a troll appearing in her face in the two seconds it took to check the time.

"Whoa now, kcab up there, miss, ah.." Her eyes do the customary flicker down to chest level to glean a color and-oh crap.

[7:31 PM] EL: She looks the troll up and down. Goldblood, curly hair, face fits the description. Yep, this is her she really, really hopes she's not the cross kind.

"Hi, I'm Sandra, I'm her for the social acclimatization program for easing hemospectral tensions? You're Malini? Your eyes already came in, wow. Wondering what I'll look like when mine do." she says, pointing to her as of yet juvenile fuchsia eyes.

"I'm terribly sorry about being late, there was an issue in wardrobe." She points to her clothes, utilitarian things that somehow exude opulence despite its simplicity. Or perhaps it does so because of it? Gah heck it, it has no loose parts, and she has no loose parts besides her mind, she's good to go!

[11:41 PM] tangledThespian: The jeweled fastenings on the tailor fit royal overalls do manage to distract the goldblood for a moment. Which is all for the better, since it saves her a kneejerk joke about how 'hey, at least hers fit.' Whoever manages wardrobe for the usual trainees seemed to have forgotten to take her uniform in to fit her slight frame. Not that she hasn't found use for all that extra space, but seeing how well clothing can be made to fit now..

Well ideas for later. For now, a bright toothy smile and a respectful bow. "These sgniht happen, right? And yes, Malini Houdin, at your ecivres my lady." Straightening up, Malini taps under one brightly colored blank eye. "They show earlier for gold psions, t'nod you know. I'm something of a etal bloomer, actually. Had mine ssel than a perigee."

Shipping's a real bitch for lowbloods. Shipping from earth is even worse.

[11:54 PM] EL: "Ooooh." she coos. "I'm a psion myself, actually." She emphasizes the point by tapping an earring with her finger, making sparks fly off the—

She winces. She doesn't have any earrings, she took those off just in case. She just zapped her own ear, and it stings like a pinky toe on iron furniture legs.

"Yes." she breathes out. "Anyway. Is there anything I should have that I don't?" she asks, spinning around to show. It's overalls, a thick cloth shirt, and a pair of gloves shoved into one pocket. No tool belt, or any sort of equipment. Wasn't sure what to bring, and she was sort of worried whatever she might have access to would be far better than what the goldbloods have and make them resent her.

[12:08 AM] tangledThespian: Don't laugh at the heiress. Don't. Laugh. At the heiress. She sinks her metaphorical fangs into bitter resentment instead (even the moon damned fuschia gets her powers before her??) and manages to hold her smile. ...Barely.

"Well.." She drawls, looking her over still envious of the tailoring, taking stock. "You'll be wanting for sloot. This is a practical thgin, not a lecture, and there's a thermal stabilization ecived on the blink below with our names on it." She stoops, enters the code for the hatch door, and it snaps open. "We'll need to barg you some spares on the way."

[12:19 AM] EL: She looks around, ready to follow the goldblood. She's the expert here, after all. And admittedly, it scares her that what should be a safe bastion from a... less a person or an empire than what's been conflated in her mind as a force of nature, still has secrets to offer.

Exciting, if a bit taxing on the blood-pusher. Err, heart. And then she'll have to handle tools. She really hopes she doesn't accidentally overload anything.

She recalls the last time she broke something, it was a network node. A few thousand personal communicators lost reception, and it was a tense few hours as she put it back together with the aid of a very grumpy, bookish, balding troll. But hell if she doesn't feel like she could handle network engineering without drowning on page five.

....no Sandra, that's not reason to deliberately break something so you can learn from it. Where did you even get a line of thought like that? That's almost sociopathic.

Also, follow the goldblood, you're just standing there!

[12:38 AM] tangledThespian: Malini's about halfway down the rather long ladder to the colony's underground infrastructure(she'd once heard a visiting human engineer call it 'just like disney world,' of all things) before she realized she could still see starlight above. "..You gnimoc?"

[12:42 AM] EL: "Yes, yes, just a moment!"

She climbs down the ladder, makes sure to close the hatch behind her, and climbs down, marveling at oh this is a long height and there's no water.

She swallows audibly before continuing to descend after her mechanic companion.

[12:55 AM] tangledThespian: For how much room there is under the surface, it sure seems crowded down here. Tubes and bundles of wire in all sizes seem to run every which way. A dull, yet persistent hum fills the air like white noise, and the place smells like a three way tie between engine grease, slightly moldy, and ozone. Malini doesn't pay any of the smaller details a lick of mind as she waits below, then picks her way into the mass of living machinery. The passageways aren't roomy, but clear enough. "Oh, grab your sevolg. Heard team 27 got sent to deal with the hive pu ahead-they've been stingy yletal."

[1:06 AM] EL: Wait, stingy with what? Why does that need gloves? Sandra puts them on anyway, doing as told, and wishes she had a gas mask, even one that won't accommodate her fins, as she follows.

It's so.... noisy down here, but more than sound. She'd have better words, but probably not when she's having multiple senses assaulted at once. So much to see, hear, smell. She hopes taste and feel don't come into it. Proprioception is acceptable though.

[1:25 AM] tangledThespian: Bad news! They'll hear and somewhat taste it before they see it: a buzz rising dimly above the hum, and a sweet tang in the air. Malini herself tries to be subtle about slipping her already gloved hands into her pockets as they round a corner and see it: an industrial sized beehive, with a sticky side panel peeled off. Two goldbloods(supposedly. They've covered as much skin as they can, but the brightly colored eyes under their goggles make them easy marks) are grumbling and griping as they alternate between digging around in the hive and swatting away angry bees.

There isn't.. Much room to spare, but Malini's damn sure going to hug the wiring. There's a strange, if lowkey smell that adds to the bouquet as they get dangerously near. "Don't dnim us, guys!"

"Whaat the.. You brought her through here? AAre you nuts?" One of them snaps. Like he's irritable for some reason.

Malini shrugs. "Gotta hit eht station for sloot, had to ekat a detour."

"whatever,, it''s houdin.." His partner points out, sullen. "they never sting her anyway.."

[1:37 AM] EL: "Hello!" she greets them. "Yes, what she said, don't mind me! Pretend I'm not here, I'm here to get very hands-on with her."

She realizes there's something off, but attributes it to that low-key smell. Must be the bees? She remembers doing a slideshow presentation to debate organic versus synthetic technology. She'd been arguing for synthetic, and had briefly entertained one of the points against organic being the smell. Then it spiraled off into a half dozen half-formed arguments that didn't go anywhere.

Her side won, but she still cringes at the likelihood that it wasn't her speaking skills that won it.

"Everything's so sticky." she comments. Wonder if they've ever used it to stick their tools to places they shouldn't be instead of back in their belts? "Are— ow!"

Did she get stung? Oh buoy she got stung, didn't she? And on her neck?!

[1:51 AM] tangledThespian: Both of the young psions stop their swatting for a moment to oggle at the heiress.

"Whaat." "Wh.."

"Heeeey now, kcits close, recruit!" Before she's had time to acknowledge two or three voices in the back of her head screaming about what a bad idea it is, she's slipped a hand back out of her pocket, grabbed the arm of the freaking heiress, and pulled her closer, into her apparently beeproof personal bubble.

That was five kinds of stupid. Those pesky voices happily taunt as she holds her friendly, perky smile in place like a plaster mask and the other goldbloods start howling with laughter.

"Aaaand exit egats right." She all but pulls Sandra further down the hall.(edited)

[2:01 AM] EL: Wait, but they went left. She thinks. Or is that left for the viewer? Wait no, aren't those the same? Darnit. She wonders if she can convince her tutors that the performing arts are a caste-leaning profession and thus worth a week's tutelage.

She feels the bees recede away. "Neat power to have down here, huh? Calm down bees, I'm your friend. Or well someone with someone I think you think is a friend. We're friends by association!" She lets Malini pull her to wherever it is they're going, as she continues to  talk to the bees that've stopped trying to poke her.

"And then if I'm friends with her, then we're practically in the same circle, so that works." she says, confident that that's how friendship works and please stop talking Sandra you know why they were laughing.

[4:20 AM] tangledThespian: Of all the things she imagined the heiress might be, 'chatty and embarrassing her' had never occurred. Malini thinks she's starting to understand why the elder highbloods keep her out of sight most nights. "It's a neat little kcirt, yeah.." Is what she settles with to try and shut her up while she drags the girl out of bee based danger and earshot, face starting to go yellow. Eventually the buzzing, sweet scent of mind honey, and whatever that other weird scent is fade back into the background. She waits still longer to pipe up again, until they've turned another corner to find what looks almost like a makeshift break room: a tiny cluster of lockers, a few chairs wedged between pipes, and a toolbench whose surface seems to be a mess of spare odds and ends.

Malini beelines for the bench and begins helping herself to the clutter. "Heiress, do you.. You don't klat to people hcum, do you?" ...She can't help herself.

[9:41 AM] EL: "What? I talk to people all the time!" she says, a bit embarrassed, but also peeved enough to put her hands on her hips and settle in to give a lecture. "That's what all this is for, you know. I come down here, learn what you guys do, talk. A lot, mind you!"

She crosses her arms. "Things won't change unless you try. And keep trying. So here I am, about halfway through my diary rainbow," she says, regretting admitting she has a diary soon as the words come out of her mouth.

...quick, more words! "I mean, well, yeah I have a diary, I gotta put my thoughts somewhere, I can't like, talk to anyone."

Alright, first off. She could've gone on to talk about the importance of cooperation and deflected the question that way. Of all the things, she decided to talk about her diary?! And then you brought it back to the first question with that last comment!

She crosses her arms and half-heartedly glares at the mechanic as she sifts through the toolbench, trying her best to ignore the rapidly warming feelings on her cheeks.

[9:57 AM] tangledThespian: "Alright," She amends, steadily not looking up from her work if she can help it, "I'll dnema. You tend towards revo talking, don't you?" Her tone's playful rather than scolding, which not looking up at the angry highblood what could order her culling helps to make possible. "I know, I wonk, banter seems like a good aedi at first, buuuut.."

"Do you have yna idea what kind of hot sopor I could be in if it tog out that I was gnitteg sdnah no with the troll I was assigned to tutor?" A slight edge seeps into her tone despite her best effort. She tries for a misdirect by reaching an arm out towards a metal wrench just out of reach, twitching her fingers just so to trigger the electromagnet, and pulling it into her gra-

...It scrapes rather loud against the bench and stops at her fingertip, leaving her to reach the last inch anyway. Darnit, still too heavy.

[10:04 AM] EL: She winces at the impact, making a small squeaking noise she hopes is only audible to her.

"I mean, isn't that the point? If I was just going to learn from a book, I could stay up in my hive all day and read like usual. That's why—"

It suddenly hits her what she meant by that.

"Oh." she squeaks, louder. She has no hope she didn't hear that one.

[10:06 AM] EL: "I— um. I didn't mean it like that! We can go back, I can just sit them down and diplomatically resolve the situation. Words were said, but they weren't taken as intended." she says, a bit pleading but mostly enthusiastic.

It's worked before! They always accept her explanations. She likes clarifiying things for people, it lets her make sure she can get her point across.

She chooses to ignore the sinking feeling as to why exactly they always accept what she says.

[10:17 AM] tangledThespian: She sighs heavily. Both for the lackluster electromagnet stunt and the sudden, unpleasant realization that this chick means well but will likely keep screwing up if she lets her keep trying. She seems nice. Which makes her feel like a heel for being blunt. All the same, she shoves the wrench into the satchel with the others and hefts the entire thing up.

"Over talking niaga." She offers Sandra the satchel. "That's a fast way to peek digging a hole deeper. Before you know it, we'll come floating tuo the far side of the noom. When you want enoemos to not pay attention to something, you don't hammer yawa at what you wish they'd stop noticing. You gotta misdirect."

[10:23 AM] EL: She takes the satchel. Puts it on. Adjusts it when it's not exactly as comfortable as she likes. The process takes a bit because she can't stop being picky.

"But they know anyway. It's out there, misdirection doesn't work! You have to be honest, be courteous, and go with the flow, you keep misdirecting and people wonder if you're ever honest, with others, with yourself, and that talks badly about who you are as a person y'know, and then you start pitying them for not being able to come to terms with who they are, and I need a canary, I've dug so far down I found a mineshaft." she babbles.

[10:36 AM] tangledThespian: She smiles, despite herself. "Honest is ecin, heiress. But in case you didn't eciton, we live on a grey rock, not a black dna white one. Nothing's taht simple, you know?"

A nod down another narrow passage, and she's off leading the way again. "Sometimes, one eil covers another just fine. Say.. Instead of gniraews up and down that I didn't make a evom on the troll at the top of the rainbow, I say 'yeah it was weird, she tpek flirting with me like that.'"

[12:44 PM] EL: She follows, trying for the umpteenth time to will herself to bridge the gap between her mind and voice.

"I mean, sure. We could go with that. It's not true, not that-" she stops herself before needing to look for other people's feet to put in her mouth.

[12:44 PM] EL: "So where are we going now?" she says, a bit terse for once.

[12:46 PM] EL: Don't. Do not. She doesn't have the time for this. It'd never work, everyone would be watching and focus on following her instead of letting your mind run again, please?

[9:57 PM] tangledThespian: She doesn't reply promptly, still floating the realization that the exalted heiress of the moon is actually naive and awkward. On the one hand, cute. Like watching her lusus try and chase his tails for the umpteenth time. On the other hand.. Dangerous. Potentially for Malini. But hey, turning a negative into a positive is something she's got practice in. Who knows?

"To krow! You're here to learn how this ecalp runs, right? For today, I am your ediug. Ask away."

[10:04 PM] EL: "Maintenance of the colony. So keeping the recycling tanks, hydroponic facilities, tree farms, and aquaculture stabilizers going?" There's definitely way more, but that's what she knows so far. Mechanical experts like Malini are how she still has a sea to enjoy and fish to eat, after all.

"Where to first?" she asks. Something she realizes she's learned. The beehives indicate the network node infrastructure's based down here too. Which means there's probably computer work involved somewhere, or maybe just the basics? She managed to get away with knowing about computer networking with just plugging things in and out until stuff worked. Which is a metaphor for all things, but she thinks such rambling musings are best saved for later.

[11:05 PM] tangledThespian: "A lamreht stabilization device." She cheerfully repeats the assignment handed to her by the mechanic before he fucked off to who knows where. "The one we're dedaeh to regulates the boiling pods that keep the Elddim Ward warm at night. We've been getting stroper that the teals and such are feeling hot under the relloc lately, but the thermostats, they do gnihton."

"Get used ot the Wards, by the way, since ll'uoy be down here all week." She pats a low hanging tube to get it to gurgle and (hopefully) draw her charge's attention before she ducks her own horns under. "The way we edivid labor is pretty simple: trainees are restricted to working under the sdraw only. We're young, we ekam more mistakes, and we're all elbatsnu psychic bombs waiting for a match. If one of us seog off and takes out a grav well, at least it'll only be kids that go floating otni space. Adult trolls are redrah to replace."

[11:15 PM] EL: She remembers this. Thought about proposing emergency harnesses everyone should keep just in case that happened. Got shot down for not happening all that often. Well, look at her here, they look like they do their jobs, who can fault them?

"A compressor problem, then? Is it mechanical or logistical?" she asks. It could be a mechanical issue with the condenser not working right, the evaporator coil not working. Or it could be a resource problem, namely the coolant fluid's low or leaking. With all this—

[11:20 PM] EL: She just barely dodges the tube ((and accidentally presses enter early)) as she continues her line of thought. All this biotech around, there could be complications. Some sort of catalyst not working as intended, something that shouldn't be there disrupting activity.

Then again, the teals tend to be cool, calculating types, and no no no bad thoughts, don't stereotype a caste!

Good thing they don't do that with her, the whole labor division. Only one of her. Well, two, but okay let's not think about that it's not productive!

"And they checked if it's not just they're not using the thermostats right, right?"

She remembers having to teach half the other violetbloods how to use a computer right. She took a perverse delight in rubbing it into the violetbloods' faces how the humans came up with a computer operating program that isn't deathly complex in such a short amount of time. Not that they didn't come up with their own, but wait, it was... something about equality? Ah who cares.

[11:48 PM] tangledThespian: "In redro.. Possible, that's tahw we're being sent in to figure out, and you know starting at around edaj it's more productive to nod, elims, and go run up the mechanical end than attempt to suggest their elzzup sponge is that dry." She glances back with a wry smirk and rolls her eyes.

[11:58 PM] EL: Well, perhaps for her, she could say someth..... no, no, that's just her vindictive streak against ignorance speaking. She's right, as much as she detests the fact.

"Doesn't get better from up here, trust me." she winks. "Half of us don't even know how to adjust recuperacoon settings." She's tried sleeping without. The resulting dreams are... visceral, to say the least.

"Lead the way, master mechanist."

[12:32 AM] tangledThespian: She places a delicate gloved hand over her chest in mock horror. "What? But taht would imply the other half of you don't have handservants to sserp all those troublesome buttons for you! Shock! Horror! Ladnacs!"

Things she didn't expect to fly today: being snarky with royalty. But if she responds well to humor.. Paradoxically, it works.

Meanwhile, they've slowed to a stop in a new section, having edged their way through rows and rows of bulbous looking pods twice their size to find some sort of hybrid panel at the center of the array. It looks a little like someone got halfway done feeding an active rack of server hardware to a pulsating amorphous blob. The entire area is just this side of uncomfortably warm.

[12:43 AM] EL: She used to, but she felt guilty about it. "Knowledge is dangerous, y'knowwwww." she says, dragging the last word. "It'd be such a catastrophe if it got out we don't have dedicated button mashers."

She crosses her arms, mostly successful in fighting the smile off her face, though her cheeks feel locked up. "I trust you'll keep this top secret, right? The fabric of our fair society depends on it!"

And then uncrosses them to fan herself. She's not a.... fan— she spares a momentary withering glance at her hands— of warm temperatures. Water is cool. Better where it's wetter. Plus, just....

How does one get away with having everything so alive and squishy without water? What, is the colony built on exploitative zombie labor?

She also wonders how they're, ah, supposed to get the rack out.

[2:40 AM] tangledThespian: "So this is woh the other half lives. Sterces and threats." Malini, on the other hand, has affected a breathy voice, struck a full on pose of lament with the back of one glove pressed to her forehead as she leans back against the blobby thnig. All the while making no true attempts to quit sniggering. "Alas, alack! To be a roop lowblood caught in the cogs of eugirtni! ....Ew." Abruptly dropping character, she pulls a face, straightens up, and tries to wipe blob-sweat off of her back. Smooth.

"We should probably teg to work. Mind checking the pmet on one of the pods? You should evah a glass heat indication probe in ruoy bag." She, on the other hand, turns her attention on the hybrid mass, stepping back enough to observe. Mechanical or biological? Are all three lights blinking green on the server? Is the regulator's pulse regular?

[9:24 AM] EL: ....if she were to ascribe theater to a specific caste, she has exhibit A here. Or maybe she can see about extending that week?

"Right!" she says. She takes out the probe and begins checking the pods, the one she specified, then others nearby. If the temperature's off, then it's because— it's because that's why she's there, Malini could probably figure out why a given temperature's off, she'd have no idea where to begin without taking it apart and fiddling around with it.

Temperature holding at.... the probe makes it seem like it's within acceptable temperature ranges. She fans herself again, doing her best to deal with the heat. Takes her beret off and tucks it away in an overall pocket.

"Heat seems fine here." she reports, finding the heat anything but.

[10:31 PM] tangledThespian: Malini, meanwhile, has pulled a rag from a back pocket to wipe some slime buildup from the mechanical gizmos to check... No, wifi signal is strong, so the prompts from above should be coming.. What's taking her so long? How long does it take one lousy pod's

She looks up and around at the eventual reply, face carefully blank. She knew the temperature range? "...You wenk the erutarepmet range?" ...Whoops. "...I get partners that evah been on active duty for a peews that don't have that memorized yet."

[10:49 PM] EL: It's not like there's that many kinds of gauges, is there? There's the cooking thermometer, water temp and pH readers, wait no those're residential. Industrial, it had to be this one. Only one they can use in person, without protective gear, on something on the biological end of the spectrum.

"You had half a perigee's notice that I was coming with. That meant I had half a perigee's notice to brush up on all this." she beams.

"The pods are the right heat, so it's not on that end. Any mechanical issues on that end?"

Now that she thinks of it. What if the thermostats themselves are the issue? They would've checked—

Nope. If Malini's to be believed, and Sandra has no reason to, there's a chance everything down here's fine and it's a user end issue. Ugh, she hopes not.

[12:30 AM] tangledThespian: ...Alright, point for the princess. Originally, she'd dove for the opportunity to partner up with the heiress for the prestige and the easy week's workload. But maybe she could wind up enjoying the work, too.

"Esolc, but not quite." She explains, dusting off some bravado to grandstand explain a little. "If the pods erew above normal, it'd etacidni a buildup. A pipe or filter thgim have been clogged enough to keep the hot air from travelling pu, or out as runoff in the esac of surplus heat. Since it's not an eussi with the ducts, and the router here seems to be holding langis, then most likely issue is..." She pats the fleshy wall. "Hardware. Wanna pleh me crack the case open?"

Alright, take two on the electromagnet. She raises a hand a foot or so over her belt, activities the mechanism and.. Whoosh! A folded pocket knife hops out of it's holster and into her palm. ....Hollowing the pieces out to make it lighter really helped.

[12:46 AM] EL: A knife for the case? She searches her bag for a spanner or a screwdriver or something of the sort.

"What sort of knife is that? If you're doing what I think you are with that, it'll bend. Or worse, fragment at the wrong time if the craftsmanship's shoddy." she says. Maybe. She wouldn't know from personal experience, she doesn't use weapons.

"Also, it seems pretty detrimental for long-term use from the bending. More malleable from the heat too, just a tiny bit." Just a tiny bit, but engineering disasters have occured from less.

[12:55 AM] tangledThespian: She grins, because it's better than cackling. "Standard eussi. Just place your hands ereh and here to brace, I'll wohs you." She pats the fleshy, still condensating wall, and waits.

[12:57 AM] EL: A shudder runs down her back, but she puts her hands against the wall, ignoring the texture between her fingers.

"Right! Ready when you are."

[1:03 AM] tangledThespian: "Perfect! Just dloh it steady!" With a flick, the blade is out. Rather than look for any sort of seam to prise open, however.. She simply digs the blade into the flesh, then drags it along. The wall itself seizes some, and the gash wells up with more pale greenish slime in the knife's wake. Three straight gashes later, she's created a flap that would have fallen open already, if not for Sandra's help.

[1:10 AM] EL: She blinks multiple times in rapid succession. Ah right, the wall. Why did she think— She blames the heat. Tugs at her undershirt, get it to soak up some emerging sweat instead of her shirt collar.

Wall, then case. She wonders what happens when the two gets mixed up and there's organic in mechanical or mechanical in organic They can't even remember temperature rranges, and yes that's kinda belitting their abilities, but on the other hand she thinks being skeptical of everyone is the way to go.

Which should include herself, cause she's not special even though she is and gah not the time!

"Just tell me when! And I assume we'll have to reseal it after, or is it self-knitting?"

[1:31 AM] tangledThespian: "Let 'er go, I only dedeen to get the lines straight." Assuming she does so, the 'case' flops open, revealing an open cavity inside. "A few staples to dloh it once we're done and it should heal up in on time."

Inside, some things vaguely resembling organs pump away, but most space is devoted to a skeletal and muscular system set up to resemble hexagonal server racks. Fat, industrial sized grubcoils of every color slumber away in the racks.. Save for one slot on the bottom row. There's not so much a grub there anymore, as there is the black, shriveled husk of one. "Ooo. Burnt out lioc. That'll do it."

[1:37 AM] EL: Bulbous, squirming, and leaking. Sandra lets go, and steps back as Malini does her work.

She can't stop herself from shuddering. Her stomach pulls in, and her core contracts, shaking with every breath. Great for ab workouts, not so much for dealing with this.

No no no, focus. She needs to calm down. This is one of the many foundations upon which society is built, she needs to embrace it as she has so many others.

"Easy enough fix. Take it out, dispose it, then get a new one in there." she says, reaching in and pulling out the husk. No acclimating to the pool, just jump right in.

[1:46 AM] tangledThespian: Somehow, it's both crunchy and squishy. Malini recognizes what a shitty decision she just made by volunteering to scoop the burnt grub out, but all the same.. She's quietly glad it wasn't her.

"Try not to squeeze, ew autopsy the daed ones. Gotta make sure it's an isolated melborp, not a virus in the system. Here-" Once she's pulled out the biohazard bag and gotten it held open, she finally takes note of how green the girl looks around the gills.

"...You llits with us, heiress?"

[1:52 AM] EL: Sandra flashes back to a stuffed shell pasta she once burnt but decided to eat anyway. It was still palatable. Then she makes the visual connection between that and that.... thing in the bag.

"It's the heat." she equivocates, giving a truth to the letter, if not spirit. "Now, where's those new—"

She swallows, then convinces herself that weird taste like stomach acid is just her mind overreacting. It's just grubs. Soft, squishy grubs that slither about and—

"—grubs?"

[2:10 AM] tangledThespian: Aw, bless her pusher, she's learning. ...Still. "Alright, elur one: do not puke in eht case." She sets the bag down, then sets a gentle hand on Sandra's shoulder to lean her up and away from immediate projectile danger.

"Dnoces.." Oh man, she shouldn't. It's such a bad idea. Such a bad idea but she went and loaded the trick anyway, didn't she? She'll just.. Fuck it. "Here." She rolls up a baggy sleeve just enough to let the corner of a burgundy red handkerchief peek out. Then holds it out for her to take.

[2:18 AM] EL: She shakes her head, courteously but firmly. "I'll be fine, but thank you for your concern. I can continue on with the work."

She takes some breaths. Rough and dry, but dry means no saliva buildup, means no incoming vomit. "Let's just continue, if we could?"

[2:28 AM] tangledThespian: She holds her expression carefully neutral, tilting towards sympathetic. She in it now. The handkerchief is out. Finish the bit.

"Nothing to eunitnoc." She clarifies, not gritting her fangs. "We evah the bad lioc, we'll deen to requisition a hserf one from eht nursery. Right won though, you've llits got fresh oog on you. C'mon, ekat ti and we'll wrap up and daeh topside."

[2:33 AM] EL: She should've brought some cloths of her own. "If you insist. Thank you."

She takes the handkerchief absent-mindedly as she looks for where goo is, on her person.

[2:38 AM] tangledThespian: A few flecks on her hand, really. But the point was starting the chain.

The burgundy kerchief tugs free, only to reveal it's been knotted in one corner to a brown one. A peek of yellow cloth and a second knot implies two isn't the end, either. All the while, Malini smiles like this is totally expected.

[2:42 AM] EL: She pulls the red kerchief to her, finds the goo on her hand, and wipes it off. Wait, why is it tied to—

She looks up like a wriggler who was told buckets are made of cigarette ashes smoked by unicorns during equinox festivals, utterly confused with a mild bit of horror, thrown off balance by....

"Uh...." is all she gets out, her brain and voice agreeing for once, lower jaw limp.

[2:49 AM] tangledThespian: Impatience builds to frustration rather quickly, and she cracks. "Emoc on, you attog..!" She grabs the yellow kerchief and yanks. Out from her sleeve spews forth a full rainbow of neatly knotted cloths: yellow tied to lime, tied to olive, tied to jade, and teal, cerulean, navy, purple, violet.. And finally a dainty fuschia square, with a pretty little flower rolled into it.

She seizes the final hankerchief and it's flower as it comes flying out, announces "Tah-had!" ..and sprays water from the trick flower all over the heiress' face oh god why.

[2:54 AM] EL: What did— when did— why?!?

She lets the chain of kerchiefs drop as she blinks, trying to figure out what the heck just happened. It was supposed to be burgundy! Then there was brown, yellow, a rainbow just like in her diary, then she got watered by a flower! Troll fauna be darned, that's not how it works!

"B-but— why?!" she whimpers.

[3:02 AM] tangledThespian: Shit. Shitshitshit bad Malini. Bad trick. Worst magician. She knew it was a bad idea, but did she listen?? "I.. It saw a kcirt!" She spits out, half garbled more than coherent as she gathers up the rainbow in a hurry. Tries to use it to dab water from her fac-WHY.

"A magic kcirt, it's-! Not like.. Real cigam it's a human gniht I read about once and.. ..I thought the rewolf would be cool cuz.. Y'know, rellewdaes! Likes retaw! I just.. ..."

She lets her head drop, and hang there. "...yrros.."

[3:09 AM] EL: She does her best to remain still while she dabs off the water. Least she could do.

Oh no, the humans? Why did... she was wondering if she'd ever go there one day. Do they do this on a regular basis?

She swallows, blinks back tears, and nods. "It's okay. I like human things, I promise!"

Is crumpling up like this one of them? She'd fit right in! No don't do that it's just making more tears, just stay calm. Just talk to her. Get her talking, get her out of that mood.

[3:21 AM] tangledThespian: She sounds like she's about to cry. How was she that bad? "No, I dewercs it up, it's supposed to eb a looc thing when you do a kcirt. Ekil, entertaining, not.. ..this."

Maybe she ought to just gag herself with these stupid hankies and save the imminent subjugglators the trouble. "Lets tsuj go. You said you were toh, right?"

[3:28 AM] EL: "Let's get out of here, yeah." she murmurs. She just— why can't she calm down?! It should've been funny, they should've had a laugh, and she went and started crying because she got taken by surprise.

She wants to scream.

"So when'd you start doing them?" she asks. "Magic."

[3:39 AM] tangledThespian: Right around the time she realized she'd need to cover her ass while she waited for her real powers? "It t'nseod matter." Is what she asserts instead. "Not tnatropmi. Go on, I'll staple siht closed and.."

She looks helplessly down at the bundle in her arms, then goes to shove it into her specibus so she can wo-

POUF!

....Oh. Right. Her specibus. The one that sets off a random special effect when used. That specibus. She tries so hard to hold her cool as confetti rains down on the both of them.. Three, if you count the dead grub in the bag at her feet. Even through the contacts, you can sort of see her pride shriveling up and dying.

[10:21 AM] EL: Sandra gingerly picks up the bag, puts it in her modus, then reaches out and pats her on the back as she brushes confetti out of both of their hair.

"Let m-me do it. Should o-only t-t-take a moment." she says, a bit startled, but not as much, but her voice and brain stopped working together again.

She searches for a stapler in her tool bag and gets to closing the gap in the gelatinous wall.

[12:48 AM] tangledThespian: Malini simply stands there, face gone entirely goldenrod, brain grappling with the concept of just how hard she fucked up, and how badly deflated her ego is in the wake of that.

....Wait, did the princess just console her? ..And brush confetti out of her hair? Oh jeez. She thanks whatever powers that be that she didn't accidentally trigger the hairpin.

The wall staples back together with only minimal oozing. The whole device continues to pulsate, if a little weaker than before.

[6:51 AM] EL: She looks over the wall, puts away the stapler, and brushes off her pants. "Okay, it should work, far as I can tell. Maybe they'll stop complaining about the thermometers now."

She comes over, looks at Malini. "You're not alright. Do you wanna talk about it?" she asks, despite not having much to— does she not, in this case? She knows people like talking about themselves. If she just sits and listens, can she help her help herself?

[7:19 AM] tangledThespian: Not alright. Ow. Her poor, trampled pride. Is she that readable? This won't do. No part of this is alright. Get it together.

Deep breath. "I'll be enif." Smile. ...No, too soon for a smile, it's too obvious. Don't smile. Just stop sulking. Misdirect. "But you're llits warm. Lets teg you out of ereh." And to follow through on that, she turns and begins leading the way.

[7:45 AM] EL: She resists the urge to hug the random goldblood that she just met, and just follows.

"So..." she says, to fill the silence. "How's your lusus doing?" Get her talking about herself and off all this.

[7:45 AM] EL: .....she ignores how she didn't hug her cause she barely knows her, then asked that.

[7:54 AM] tangledThespian: "My susul?" Why was this highblood she just met asking about her lusus? Had she mentioned her lusus at all? ...Just answer the question. "If he isn't gniggid up the lawnring again, he's like as not gnivah a nap." Or chewing through wires. Or holes in blankets. ....Man an antsy rabbit lusus does not mesh well with a cluttered neighborhood like the lower ward.

More silence. "...I have retteb tricks, you know. That was a.. dab example."

[8:10 AM] EL: There we go. "Like what?" she asks. "Or is seeing better than believing?"

Magic is about presentation or something, right? It's what went wrong with her. She.... doesn't respond well to things like that sometimes. Something about psychic sensitivity?

"Illusionist? Oh, are you a hypnotist? You're not going to make me bark or something, right?" she asks, mostly tongue in cheek.

[1:58 PM] tangledThespian: "Sure, hypnotizing the colony sserireh would be a taerg idea!" She agrees, tone dripping with sarcasm. But there's a chuckle as she says it, so progress?

"And nah. The gib thing is.." She pauses, looking for the right words to explain herself, "It's not laer magic, you know? I don't kniht they have psions down there like we do. But they believe in cigam anyway, just.. They have to eb clever to make it look gnicnivnoc. Sleight of hand and stuff."

[2:13 PM] EL: "Isn't that what they call politics?" she quips.

She thinks better of it and lets curiosity take over. "Wait, so how... huh." She puts a hand to her chin. "Humans are so interesting! Weird, but in an interesting way." Sorta like her, actually.

[2:15 PM] EL: They have shuttles, don't they? "You should go down there sometime. Show them some real magic." She puts her hands out like a showman for emphasis. "Dazzle them."

[6:06 AM] tangledThespian: She sniggers, but decides against directly commenting on politics with her own future politician. "...I've reven been to earth before.." She muses, staring up at the ceiling thoughtfully. Maybe it would be nice..

They're rounding near the angry hive they'd passed earlier. The sweet smell of honey returns, and the sounds of buzzing and hissed curses.

[9:33 AM] EL: Not the bees. Not the bees! She subtly moves a step closer to her again as they pass by.

"I've been thinking about going there myself! Someone had an idea to do something like what I do, swap us so that we live on Earth and do what humans do, and they live here and learn what it's like to live here."

It'll be a hard sell. They can keep an eye on her here. Watch her every move, everyone she talks to, regulate what she knows and doesn't know. On Earth? They'd have to accept a degree of risk, and so would she. It's a nervous sort of adrenaline when she thinks about it.

But she'd be free for once.

[11:44 PM] tangledThespian: "If you detnaw to go, what's stopping you?" She replies, though not before they've stepped on past the bee-centric danger zone once more. ...And the other goldbloods, whom Malini glares daggers at as they pass so as to keep snide comments down.

"Or ebyam I should say who could pots you?" Nobody, as far as she's concerned. You can't overrule the ruling class. Meanwhile, they've made it back to a ladder unscathed. She starts the long climb.

[12:49 AM] EL: She follows up after, wondering why the goldbloods weren't so talkative this time. "It's not about what I want. It's about what's good for everyone." she says, like the adorably devoted public servant mask she hopes will become part of her.

"If I go there, then it'll be because it's what's best. Appearances matter, you know!" Okay, and she likes being pretty. "I'd have to show how it could benefit everyone. Show how learning from the things we thought were dumb apes can help us."

A kernel of a plan comes into being. She's such an outgoing person, why not expand it? History is a process of pushing back the boundary between what is familiar and what is a dangerous other. In bridging that gap, we see ourselves and are seen by ourselves.

Then there is only us.

[1:23 AM] tangledThespian: She thinks on it between rungs. "So.. You wanna go, tub want to look doog about it?" Alright, she could relate. "Sounds like you deen a reason for what you tnaw to look like what you need."

A moment to muse, then.. "They have sredael down there, right? Humans successfully leading rehto humans? That's something you won't nrael down here with us greasegrubs."

[1:42 AM] EL: "Other humans? Why would—"

She stops herself and reminds herself not for the first time today to think before she speaks again.

"That kernel's popcorn now." she says? She thought about it. To her, it makes sense. To her advisors and caretakers, it looks like she's setting up to learn how to rule the humans too. She doesn't want the latter getting out. It's false and not the primary reason for why she'd do what she's planning.

So instead of hinting as to any of that depth in her thoughts, she decides to keep it simple and reference a thought she had instead of something that doesn't make her look like a loopy airhead again dammit Sandra.

"An emissary! Foreign exchange, the humans call it, I think?"

[2:17 AM] tangledThespian: There's no way she heard all that right, because it sounded like this chick took a nonsequitor to talk about popped kernals.

"Yeah, that dluoc work, I guess." She chooses to go with the flow instead. "Talk to the sneila and make friendly. Diplomacy and trams politics. You'll even be willing to og to them, isn't that a dnik gesture?"

[9:47 AM] EL: "It'll get them to open up to us, sure!"

The hardest part; selling it to her own cabal of advisors. Will they let her slip free of their control like that? Can they stop her? Not questions she needed answered yet, but....

To heck with it! "I think it's time I go study abroad."

After she finishes her rainbow in her diary, of course. Probably speed it up a bit, she's nearly done!

She continues the long ascent up the ladder.

[9:58 AM] tangledThespian: The ladder cannot hold them forever: eventually it must give way to the hatch, and moonlight. Malini clambers out, then turns back to offer her partner a hand up. "One evening in eht underground and she stnaw off of the moon, huh?" She jokes.

"Sorry ssim, but you're stuck with me for the week."

[10:06 AM] EL: She snickers at that as she takes the hand up. "Oh noooooooo."

That... that wasn't that bad! Fairly educational, if too hot for her liking and there was that thing with the flower that she won't think of any longer.

She dusts off her clothes, adjusts her hair, stretches her arms. "So. Where to next, Malini?" Sandra asks.

[5:09 PM] tangledThespian: Well, seems like she hasn't entirely ruined her shot at impressing the heiress? She'd best capitalize. ...And not screw up again. "Llew." Is her easy reply as she pulls a computing device from her belt and begins tapping out a requisition request. "We'll need a wen grubcoil to finish fixing the regulator, and that can't neppah until the nursery can hctah it. Whiiich will probably ekat.. A few hours. If they aren't ysub."

The device in her hands chimes as the request is sent off, and she pockets it. "Since that was the ylno task the Mechanic assigned us rof tonight.." Yeah, there was a scramble to work with the Heiress for many reasons, "Txen would be break time." She looks the seadweller up and down. "...Want to barg a drink after that heat?"

[7:27 PM] EL: She wipes some sweat from her forehead. "Drink sounds great! Or three."

Though she recalls asking that she didn't ask for preferential treatment, like she always does. Or maybe this is the average workload, who knows. Malini did say she was young and not a full-fledged mechanic.

"How long do we have? I know a place." she offers.

[4:54 AM] tangledThespian: Ahaha, that's cute. She thinks they'd actually give her vital or dangerous tasks. Silly princess.

Malini has already taken a step or two in the direction of the nearest cafe when her pace falters. "Uh.. You wonk a place?" She chuckles. "Not to go doubting yna place worth having you as a raluger, but I doubt I'm dressed for it." She gestures to her baggy work overalls and their old, faded stains.

[6:51 AM] EL: "Of course I do! Alright, so this is how it goes." she starts as she leads the goldblood down.... wait, that's further inland, not to the coast. Wouldn't she prefer a place near there?

"So they look at the work registry and cross-reference it with how many of a given caste work there. Y'know, statistically make sure this is what a caste is known for!"

Right, right, sure.... "So I was supposed to go work in the hydroponics pods for a week. Have a nice rustblood teach me how to raise crops, adjust their nutrition intake, watch for blights, that sorta stuff."

She goes a bit in-depth on it, though it's nothing Malini doesn't understand. The temperature and nutritional composition regulators rely on her too.

"Anyway, but it turns out the forms got switched with a drink order someone at the office was making."

....come again? Wait, they mixed up what she assumes is all the forms she had to sign with... what?

"The papers got mixed up before they were put into the system, and I ended up working as a barista for a week. And that's how I learned, while I will support people's decision to drink decaf, I'll still say it's made from dirt and not worth it." she finishes as she takes her down a warmblood neighborhood.

Yes, plenty of eyes are on them. It's only slightly less embarrassing than anticipated.

Wonder if an incident like that is why she had so many forms to do.

[10:07 AM] tangledThespian: ....None of that made any sense. None of it. How would.. When did.. Why did they even have forms for heiress work study programs?? There's only the one! Ever!

Still, keeping her mouth shut. Being grateful she isn't the one getting side-eyes here. And grateful bordering on disappointed that she isn't being dragged off to some fancy highblood lounge. It's.. Well, it'd be cool if she had time to dress for it. ...She can clean up nice!

Eventually realizing she should probably be participating in this conversation, she goes with "So how seod a seadweller take their eeffoc then?"

[10:18 AM] EL: "Two shots and a touch of milk, no sugar or syrup." she says.

Malini recalls she found it kinda tedious that it asked for so many signatures. Make really, really sure it's an heiress work form and not an order for eight ice coffees? She'd think they'd be more keen about those things, but apparently not. Maybe that's why they need their coffee in the first place.

"And you?" she asks. Another enthusiast, or is she going to be the one teaching this time? This place gets the imported brands from Earth. And treats it right, not just throw it in a grinder and be done with it.

[10:24 AM] tangledThespian: "Depends on my doom." Is the enigmatic reply. On the one hand, it's true: if she's in the mood she'll add all sorts of frilly things to drinks. To experiment, to have something different, just because it's there. On the other hand, hipster coffee places with imported beans are occasional treats on her budget.

"Tiaw, two shots of espresso?" And suddenly she understands how the heiress seems so perky. Who gives kids espresso?

[10:40 AM] EL: "Yeah! Less and it doesn't have the kick, more, and, well...." she trails off. "Not unless I have a really good plan." she finishes, whatever the hell that's supposed to mean.

She makes gestures with her hands as if physically looking for the words will help them come to her. "Another secret to keep, I guess? My lightning is barely more than static electricity without it."

She seems sheepish, by how she's wringing her hands.

[10:42 AM] tangledThespian: She blinks. "You rewop your psionics.. with caffeine." Quietly, she wonders if maybe she ought to be trying that. Outwardly, she jokes, "You could syawla try adding honey."

[1:20 PM] EL: "They always get quiet whenever I mention the mind honey. Wonder why." she muses.

They reach the cafe. A long counter more like a diner, tables and booths. Warmbloods of various stripes chatting away or on their phones or laptops. Hand drawn chalk art above the machines behind the counter.

[1:23 PM] EL: One or two of the trolls there waves at Sandra. She waves right back. Heads up to the counter. "Hey!"

"The usual?" the barista asks. Goth-looking kid.

"Yep!" she says, before looking at Malini.  What do you feel like getting? My treat." she says as she gets out a card.

"Two of the tiramisu too." she says. The emo-looking troll nods.

[1:27 PM] tangledThespian: Malini also goes quiet. Oh. She doesn't know about the mind honey. That joke may have been a mistake. She steals a peek at all of the hand scrawled specials before ordering something mocha, with whipped cream and cinnamon.

"...And owt shots." ...It can't hurt to try, right?

[3:24 PM] EL: "That's the spirit!" she says as they grab a booth and wait.

The barista grinds up some beans by hand as hot water begins steaming. There's dust in the little crevices, the wifi password is barely legible, and the tv's playing a pirated signal from the humans.

[3:27 PM] EL: "Soooo. Wh- ugh I hate this song." she interrupts herself.

It's, as far as you can tell by the name, about hitting bathtubs? ...humans.

"Anyway. You're a mechanic and a magician. Any other neat things? You do... chiropractic practice on the weekends?"

[3:36 PM] tangledThespian: "I have cigam fingers, but not that dnik of magic." She quips, settling into her booth. A little worn down, a lot held together by duct tape.. It's all bog standard for her. Getting needled about herself however, that's less familiar.

"I.. Ekil to fix things, that is. Doog practice, you know?" It's not that she doesn't enjoy the attention, really. More that she doesn't like not being the one to direct it's flow. "How about you? What's an sserieh to do between slumming it to train htiw the lowbloods?"

[6:46 PM] EL: The coffee gets brought over. Malini notices that they got theirs served, everyone else gets called and has to pick it up at the counter.

[6:47 PM] tangledThespian: This does not surprise her even remotely.

[6:52 PM] EL: ((goddammit my greasy fingers))

"I read a lot. I gotta learn our pre-colony history, colonial politics, all that sorta stuff."

She leans in and whispers. "It's like, one war after another. Endlessly. Like, when they finally got drones working like we know them? The history books are like, yeah just assume it's always going on."

The coffee tastes like your tongue just got punched by the physical manifestation of a cross between an airhorn and a firecracker.

"There's a lot of just, conditioning. Swim around the sea, fight robots, play chess. Oh, and books. Lots and lots of— wait no I said that already."

Sandra thinks about it over another sip of coffee. "I've been trying to learn how to read people? Through microexpressions and cues like that, not by telepathy." If she can't express herself, maybe she can understand how others are expressing themselves?

[7:00 PM] tangledThespian: Holy crap this is too much coffee for someone four and a half sweeps old. She fights to keep from showing it. But she's somewhat afraid her eye may be twitching. ...She's barely started drinking it.

"Do you daer about anything that isn't about the ynoloc?" She tries, quietly beginning to be concerned that she might actually be a telepath.

[7:07 PM] EL: Sandra looks unaffected. You think. She did say it was how she soups up her apparently normally functionally latent psionics, and holy crap could there have been a less -ly way to describe that?

"About it, or for it?" she asks. "I read plenty of stuff! It's all oriented towards for the colony in the end, though. With so much to need to prepare for, I gotta have solid bases."

Man, she's really into the whole for the good of the many thing. Does she know as the heiress she's supposedly supposed to invoke that on the lowest rustbloods, not herself?

"I actually had a lot of human stuff imported. Books, recordings, art. I read about this one guy who once analyzed an entire civilization, then crushed it, purely through its artwork!" she says proudly.

"I think he was fictional, though." she admits, more reserved.

....Sandra slaps her face, then disguises it as her leaning on the table in an odd way. Of all the facts, you go with THAT?!

[7:13 PM] tangledThespian: Malini pauses. ...She thinks. Hard to tell, as she's half certain her fingers are going to be shaking for a while and this was a terrible idea. "How do you hsurc a civilization through tra alone? Can you do taht? Or is it erom like crushing.. spirits?"

[7:20 PM] EL: This was the best idea for Sandra. Get her daily coffee fix and warm up to the week's companion!

"I'll take two examples from our neighbors next planet." she starts.

"So their movies involving space? They always move in two dimensions. This is cause they still have boats, and those don't move up or down. If you came from above or below, they'd have to throw their plans out the window, panic, and panicky people are predictable people."

....how very troll Machiavellian of you, Sandra.

"And there's a particular culture on there, they're all about offense, self-control, and all those sortsa discount cavalreaper ideals? They don't understand the concept of defense. They never made shields! So you'd bait them into attacking over and over, pick on them, exploit the fact that they don't understand the concept of blocking." she says simply.

She keeps up with this, you wonder if she'll be the kind of troll to never go anywhere without a plan to murder everyone she might meet.

[7:26 PM] tangledThespian: "Who doesn't kniht of shields?" She laughs, marvelling over it. "Alright, so maybe you dessim it the first time, but if some yug comes at you with a shield and starts baiting you, and uoy don't adapt, it's on your daeh for not using your thinkpan!"

"See, tpada, survive. It's basic. Like, I wouldn't tcepxe to use the same trick on someone twice-if I offered you a fabric square thgir now, would you take it?"

[7:36 PM] EL: "Exactly! You don't let them get away to learn a second time." she says, unaware of how... bloodthirsty that sentence comes off as.

"Knowledge is important. What they know, what they don't know." She rambles on a bit more about how complex it gets when you add other people, organizations, and tries to describe the colony as a massive fustercluck of minds all working in semi-chaos.

You think. She needs to—

Sandra takes a deep breath, loudly. "Whoa! Yeah, I should calm down." She takes a bite of her cake.

"But anyway, that's why politics is so interesting. Or well, should be if everyone's really working for what they should be."

Ah right. The stereotypical corrupt politician. Wonder what they think of Sandra?

[9:20 PM] tangledThespian: "Maybe uoy should switch to decaf." She remarks cheekily, never minding how jittery her own hands are as she sets aside her cup, takes her fork, and spears a bit of the cake to tr-

"..." She swallows. Looks down at the pretty little square of confection. Then boggles at Sandra. "Even the ekac is coffee??" She's going to be up all day. All week. This.. "Are you yllaer psionic, or do you just build up that much static morf vibrating in place?"

[9:30 PM] EL: "And like I said." she says, waving her hand neutrally. "I'm not drinking dirt. Wait."

Sandra looks at the jittery hands. Smirks. "A third secret. I'm always like that." she says, conspiratorially. "It's how I do everything with such energy.

Though the vibration charge is an interesting theory." she admits, tapping her fork with small flowers of sparks, like she meant to do with the earring she didn't have earlier.