You Wouldn't Pirate a Pirate

Oct 30 13:19:00 * Mackenzie is on a motherfucking boat, and stepping in to see his motherfucking manager. That's the official term, right?
Oct 30 13:22:18 <Aori_Radidjiu> Right.  Jennifer is busy typing up a SUPER FORMAL REPORT on everything that happened on Hermit, built from interviewing everyone on the boat about what happened and some other things, because you guys just aren't the type to write super official soundign things.  Her head immediately lifts up to look from her computer to you when you open the door.  "Yes?"
Oct 30 13:23:16 <Mackenzie> "Ah...  Do you remember what we talked about a while ago?  About your abilities?"
Oct 30 13:23:29 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Yes?"
Oct 30 13:28:16 <Mackenzie> "When we get back to base, I want to take Lecia up on her offer to go to the Dream World and see who I was before Aether started messing with things.  I would like the reassurance of having you come with me, but also, what happens in there could become related to what we talked about.  Also, depending on what I see in there, I might need your guidance to make the best decision.
Oct 30 13:28:16 <Mackenzie> There's a good chance that that person did not become an actor, and...  You know how much my career means to me.  If he is not an actor, it means that the thing I care about most was a complete fluke, and should not have been.  I've been thinking about this for a long time."
Oct 30 13:33:58 <Aori_Radidjiu> She hits Ctrl-s and puts the computer to sleep.  "I understand.  It can be really shocking to find a different calling in life than what you built up to..."
Oct 30 13:34:30 <Mackenzie> "There might be an alternate version of yourself involved, too."
Oct 30 13:38:57 <Mackenzie> "Anyway...  I guess that was all I had.  I'd appreciate it if you came with me."
Oct 30 13:39:38 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I should be able to, so no problem."
Oct 30 13:42:10 <Mackenzie> "Thank you."  He backs out, not wanting to distract her for longer than he needs to.  Bad memories, man.
Oct 30 13:43:42 <Mackenzie> Which meeeeeeans we can fast forward to after Knox gets out, and Mack runs into him because he's a Mack and that's what Macks do.
Oct 30 13:44:33 <Knox> When Mack heads over to Lecia's lab, he finds Knox... chilling just outside of the lab in the Leciacave proper, leaning against the wall next to the outer security door. He has his arms crossed and looks deep in thought.
Oct 30 13:46:16 <Mackenzie> "Hello, Knox.  Have you already been in yet?"
Oct 30 13:46:24 <Knox> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFbVhFlqt3k
Oct 30 13:46:41 <Knox> He looks up, jerked out of his thoughts, but he's not surprised to see Mack. "...Yeah."
Oct 30 13:47:47 <Mackenzie> "Anybody else in there?"  He bends forward a little to get a closer look at his eyes.  He's making it a point to make it as apparent as possible that he's just being a Mack.
Oct 30 13:49:25 <Knox> Knox's eyes are still normal. The pirate doesn't really react to him getting up all in his face."...No, I was the only one. I don't really think the girls care. ...As for myself... I'm not sure what I expected, really." he smirks. "Hell of a thing, though."
Oct 30 13:50:07 <Mackenzie> "What did you see?"  He backs back up.
Oct 30 13:55:06 <Knox> "Some things were wildly different, other things hadn't changed at all. For starters, he grew up well-adjusted. Mom never left. He had a pokemon to keep him company through his childhood - a vileplume named Noxious. His lifestyle was the one I never wanted for myself... a bright, successful career in law enforcement, jumpstarted by exposing and putting away my shitstain of a father.
Oct 30 13:55:06 <Knox> He was in a steady relationship, too. Pretty much spotless. But as much as I scoff at that kind of life... I couldn't look down on him. He was still me." he looks nostalgic a moment. "...My former captain, Jasmine... he and Jazz were detective partners working for their equivalent of PIRATES, still fighting against Aether. He was still a hell of a brawler and eager to test himself.
Oct 30 13:55:06 <Knox> That much didn't change. Guess that's one thing that's constant - liking to beat the shit out of people."
Oct 30 13:55:41 <Knox> "Apparently he wasn't the only 'other me' in that world, though... and now? ...Well, we'll see."
Oct 30 14:00:04 <Mackenzie> He thinks about Knox's reaction to what he saw, and his position at large.  "I guess my concerns would probably seem unrealistic from your perspective."
Oct 30 14:00:11 <Knox> "I feel a hell of a lot stronger now, either way, and the thing I think I've taken away from this the most... is that we have a lot of goddamn potential to be whatever the hell we want. Whether that's a respected detective or a feared pirate, we're entirely what we make of ourselves. That's a luxury even the gods don't have."
Oct 30 14:01:07 <Knox> He quirks an eyebrow.
Oct 30 14:02:59 <Knox> By the way, as Mack got in his face a moment ago, he would have smelled a sharp floral fragrance that brings to mind some sort of cologne.
Oct 30 14:03:41 <Mackenzie> "What I am...  I've poured my entire being into it.  All of my effort from the first time I saw the movie that got me enamored with acting, was to be an actor myself.  I wasn't just, some guy who got lucky good looks or whatever.  It's been 30-some years of work and discipline to get to where I am.  Thinking about a world where I probably don't care about that at all, it harms me."
Oct 30 14:08:44 <Knox> "Does that really matter?" he asks, a bit skeptical. "Isn't that just a testament to your own potential? Even if the other you is some lazy cunt or something - which I doubt because Aether is probably involved -, the Mackenzie Frazier in front of me is a guy that worked fucking hard to get where he is. If the other Mack isn't an actor, that just means you're the one who had the will
Oct 30 14:08:44 <Knox> and drive to succeed. It's entirely possible the other you became passionate about something else, instead, and he's probably master class at whatever that is."
Oct 30 14:09:02 <Knox> "Maybe I'm not getting you, here." he shrugs.
Oct 30 14:14:10 <Mackenzie> "The potentiality that bothers me the most, that's been stuck on my mind, is that Aether might have wanted me to be this, and to be so engrossed in this life, just to make sure that I'm not something they didn't want me to be.  My entire life's passion is their off-handed convenience."  He doesn't wait for a response that time, and goes in to see Lecia.
Oct 30 14:15:31 <Aori_Radidjiu> As you say that, Jennifer catches up and enters the Lecia cave.  "Wait up."
Oct 30 14:15:48 * Mackenzie freezes mid-stride.
Oct 30 14:16:11 <Mackenzie> Like a goof, not like a terrified person.
Oct 30 14:16:38 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I apologize for being late, had to finish up some things, but I'm here now."
Oct 30 14:17:49 <Mackenzie> He looks over, a little bit of sheepishness showing.  "May I move again?"
Oct 30 14:18:32 <Knox> He glances after Mack as he goes. "Pfft. I don't believe that for a fucking second. They might have tried to divert us, but they don't control our entire goddamn lives. Our choices are still ours." He watches them go. "...I'm starting to think that drive, that will, belief itself is a tangible force." He starts murmuring to himself. "...Human belief shapes and transforms deities,
Oct 30 14:18:32 <Knox> who are slaves to the collective view. An unknown potential in humans causes Mega Evolution. Even our entire goddamn world's essence is in some library in the Dreamworld, a place where imagine and will shape reality more directly... Maybe August was right after all..."
Oct 30 14:18:58 <Aori_Radidjiu> She walks up to right beside you.  "Now you may move."
Oct 30 14:19:14 <Knox> Knox decides to go think on his sudden ramblings back on the ship and heads out.
Oct 30 14:19:35 <Knox> *imagination
Oct 30 14:20:43 * Mackenzie returns to neutral. "I don't actually see Lecia right now. Perhaps we should see her assistant."
Oct 30 14:23:10 <Aori_Radidjiu> Gran pops up from behind one of the heaps of gadgets and junks in the room.  "You called?"
Oct 30 14:25:01 <Mackenzie> "We would like to access the dream world to see who I was before Aether's influence.  As Knox had earlier."
Oct 30 14:27:01 <Aori_Radidjiu> He nods.  "Understood.  I shall send you to meet Mother Swanna, then.  Please follow."  He turns and heads off...
Oct 30 14:27:37 <Aori_Radidjiu> Down, down into a more complicated part fo the complex, in a lab deep inside, with beds set up inside a machine.  "Lay here and I shall induce you."
Oct 30 14:28:56 <Mackenzie> "May I bring any of my pokemon in with me?"
Oct 30 14:29:33 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Yes.  The machine will handle bringing mental copies of them, so you do not have to focus on materializing them."
Oct 30 14:33:35 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I cannot accompany you, but you will end up in front of the current settlement of Mother Swanna.  Let her know that Lecia sent you and she will help you."
Oct 30 14:33:58 <Mackenzie> "Nifty.  Thank you."  He motions to the beds.  "Shall we, Jennifer?"
Oct 30 14:34:13 <Mackenzie> He lies down on one without actually waiting for a response.
Oct 30 14:35:15 <Aori_Radidjiu> She lies down on one.  "I hope this machine has a way to knock us out, I can't really fall asleep fully clothed like this."  She grumbles a bit, but lies down anyway.
Oct 30 14:35:33 <Aori_Radidjiu> A purple gas enters the machine as it seals up, and you find yourself drifting...off...
Oct 30 14:35:45 <Mackenzie> "I'm sure they have their...  ways..."
Oct 30 14:38:45 <Aori_Radidjiu> You find yourself in front of a castle...or cathedral...or whatever it is.  You're dressed up in your usual garb, but Jennifer's dressed up like http://safebooru.org/index.php?page=post&s=view&id=741170 for whatever reason.  She tugs at the bunny ears in a little bit of confusion, but they don't seem to be coming off.
Oct 30 14:39:16 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Let's...just get to business, shall we?"
Oct 30 14:40:41 <Mackenzie> 4d6+1 don't smirk
Oct 30 14:40:41 <PsychoRoll> Mackenzie, don't smirk: 17 [4d6=2,4,4,6]
Oct 30 14:43:32 <Mackenzie> "Very well."  Mack enters the casthedral, and begins walking down in silent dignity, listening to the sound of his footsteps echoing.
Oct 30 14:53:23 <Aori_Radidjiu> There's an ornate entryway to a larger palace here, with a red carpet leading the way ahead, and the walls gilded in gold.  Fabulous treasures and wealth adorn the sides of the carpet, and hte carpet leads to a tea table where Mother Swanna (http://i.imgur.com/TFqjPn6.jpg) and Lecia are sitting across from each other, having tea, and a Ducklett is sat at the table too, occasionally
Oct 30 14:53:23 <Aori_Radidjiu> quacking out some rude quip or another.
Oct 30 14:57:08 <Cille_Lund> It's good tea, so naturally she's stuck around! That, and she might as well get all her hours while she's here.
Oct 30 14:57:13 * Cille_Lund is now known as Lecia
Oct 30 14:59:18 * Mackenzie comes within a respectful distance of the table, and takes a knee. "Your majesty."
Oct 30 15:00:44 <Aori_Radidjiu> The Ducklett quacks.  "I like this one, he knows his place!"  Mother Swanna lets out a short giggle and gives the Ducklett a "Hush."  before addressing you.  "Hello sir, I assume you are also here to find more about yourself?"
Oct 30 15:02:33 <Aori_Radidjiu> "...or is it the Madam who's here to do so?"  Jennifer shakes her head vigorously, as the Ducklett quips, "I can handle the bunny!  I want the bunny!  C'mon bunny I'll fulfill your dream of breeding like a-"  Jennifer decks him in the face and sends him flying, the Ducklett letting out a "QUACK!" as he flies into a wall.
Oct 30 15:04:51 <Aori_Radidjiu> She cracks her knuckles.  "That felt good."
Oct 30 15:05:31 <Mackenzie> "Yes.  I've been hiding from feelings that what I see might make my whole life feel pointless, but...  I've come to the conclusion that hiding from it will never let me reaffirm myself."  He stands up.  "I'm ready to meet the reality that once was.  And I'll meet it the best way I know."  Can Mack change his getup?
Oct 30 15:05:35 <Lecia> Siiip. "Ah, hi, Mackenzie...and Jennifer? ...I guess that makes sense, she definitely knows how to handle him." She nods in approval!
Oct 30 15:06:16 <Aori_Radidjiu> You can!  You can essentially switch it to whatever you think is most appropriate, on the fly.
Oct 30 15:07:36 <Lecia> "...And with you two so attached to each other, I imagine she might want to see how much her own situation would have changed..." She ponders.
Oct 30 15:07:46 <Mackenzie> Mack's outfit changes into a long, black leather trench coat.  He slicks his hair back, and puts on his sunglasses.  He looks toward Jennifer.  "Do you remember that trilogy, The Manectrix?"
Oct 30 15:10:14 <Aori_Radidjiu> She looks you up and down, before turning to Swanna.  "...how come he can do that but I'm stuck with bunny ears?"  Swanna smirks.  "It's part of his origin, dear, a part of his being.  Yours, on the other hand, is more associated with madness, which is why you're the March Hare."
Oct 30 15:11:47 <Mackenzie> "I might need her to wear a tight black leather suit.  ...To match the image I'm trying to present, of course."
Oct 30 15:11:49 <Lecia> Siiiiiip.
Oct 30 15:12:59 <Aori_Radidjiu> She tugs at her outfit.  "Well, this corset seems to be made of black leather...and there was that bit with following the white rabbit in the first movie, wasn't there?"
Oct 30 15:14:16 <Mackenzie> "I suppose so.  ...But don't forget what you said, that one day."
Oct 30 15:14:51 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Guess I'll need to lose the bag, though."  She tosses it at the Ducklett, who is just getting back up on his feet, right before it crashes into him.  "Good?"
Oct 30 15:17:25 <Mackenzie> Mack scratches his head, not sure again if he's ready.  "Let's get this done."
Oct 30 15:19:53 <Aori_Radidjiu> Mother Swanna gets up, pushes in her chair, and walks toward a side room's door in a single fluid motion, her dress fluttering behind her with no wind.  She opens the door, revealing an absolutely huge library, larger than you can comprehend.  She pauses for a bit, hmmms, then snaps her fingers before grabbing...3 books.  "Your concept is a bit...busy."
Oct 30 15:20:36 <Aori_Radidjiu> "There's the base you, and then...two others who got annexed on."
Oct 30 15:21:36 <Lecia> Lecia decides that she might as well stick around until told not to do so! ...And as such, oh boy, this is a doozy.
Oct 30 15:23:49 <Mackenzie> "..."  mack remembers something, and summons Eileen.  "I'd like you to be here for this, too."
Oct 30 15:24:31 <Mackenzie> "So that means I'm meeting three people?"
Oct 30 15:26:16 <Aori_Radidjiu> Eileen pops up, in her human form.  She's looking...a bit more together than she used to. http://safebooru.org/index.php?page=post&s=view&id=1343840
Oct 30 15:28:45 <Aori_Radidjiu> Eh, http://safebooru.org/index.php?page=post&s=view&id=1210315 is a little more accurate
Oct 30 15:29:35 <Mackenzie> >blatant waifu favoritism
Oct 30 15:29:58 <Aori_Radidjiu> She holds her hands together, in front of her waist, and looks around a bit.  "Hm, not a bad place in the least, here..."
Oct 30 15:31:40 <Aori_Radidjiu> It doesn't feel like she's even sprung forth from your mind, more like she came here on her own.  "Hard to say whether I like the human version of this place or the Pokemon version better, hrm..."
Oct 30 15:32:23 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Anyway, Mackenzie, what are we doing~?"
Oct 30 15:32:54 <Aori_Radidjiu> Jennifer is silent, walking ahead into the library room where Swanna has the three books.
Oct 30 15:32:55 <Mackenzie> "We're finding how who I really am.  Was.  Something."
Oct 30 15:34:18 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Okay, let's do that, then!"  She hums a few bouncing notes as she heads over to Swanna with the books.
Oct 30 15:35:03 * Mackenzie follows Jennifer and Eileen. Is he the only one still not really okay with this? Is he making a fuss over nothing?
Oct 30 15:38:10 <Aori_Radidjiu> Swanna holds up one of the books, titled "Mackenzie Frazier" with some other annotations denoting world index, which uses a combination of letters, numbers, and some characters in a script you've never seen to denote which specific world in the multiverse it is.  "This is the closest, most pure Mackenzie I could find."
Oct 30 15:39:46 <Mackenzie> That 'pure' word choice is making him apprehensive again.  "So, what happens now?"
Oct 30 15:41:10 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I'll take you into a scene of what he'd be doing at the point in your life he's at.  It's a little harder to find something more equivalent with the toher two, so I'll just find a highlight.  Sound good?"
Oct 30 15:41:34 <Mackenzie> "Alright.  Let's go, then."
Oct 30 15:43:15 <Aori_Radidjiu> She tosses the book on the floor and it pops open, then streeetches and bends, forming a floor, walls and a ceiling, and eventually those turn from pages to shapes and colors, until you're in a theatre, similar to the Twinkle Theatre you went to recently, with Mackenzie Frazier on stage.  He's performing a monologue, the stage bereft of other actors.  You, Eileen, Jennifer, and Lecia
Oct 30 15:43:15 <Aori_Radidjiu> are in the audience, in adjacent seats, which is pretty packed.
Oct 30 15:43:31 <Aori_Radidjiu> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYZHb2xo0OI
Oct 30 15:46:55 * Mackenzie is actually surprised. He's an actor! And he's performing with admirable emotion!
Oct 30 15:47:20 * Mackenzie makes no effort to conceal a huge grin.
Oct 30 15:47:26 <Lecia> Well, this is worth watching! Free tickets!
Oct 30 15:50:11 <Aori_Radidjiu> As he approaches fair Ophelia, everyone in the audience, as well as Ophelia, disappears, and it's just you and all the spectators you brought along in the seats, and just him on stage.  "It seems my fair Ophelia has gone away..." And then he turns to the audience.  "And those looking on have all but disappeared.  Have I fallen into a dream, or has death taken hold of me far sooner
Oct 30 15:50:11 <Aori_Radidjiu> than I'd realized?"
Oct 30 15:51:49 * Mackenzie stands up, and walks silently up to the stage. "Hello, sir."
Oct 30 15:52:50 <Aori_Radidjiu> He dramatically flips his hair out of his eyes and turns to look at you.  "Hello.  It seems I am no longer on the real stage, but an illusion of one, yes?"
Oct 30 15:56:04 <Lecia> ...Is he...sharp? No, can't be. This might be a show that rivals the other one!
Oct 30 15:56:29 <Mackenzie> "What if I told you that everything you have come to know about this world...  Does not exist?  Everyone you see, everything you hold dear...  It's all an illusion, perpetuated by a force that would seek to control you, and everything you are?"
Oct 30 15:57:15 <Aori_Radidjiu> He smirks.  "I'd have to say I'm doing rather well for myself, in that case."
Oct 30 15:59:50 <Aori_Radidjiu> "If the world is but a stage, then there must be no position more prestigious than that of a master of theatre."
Oct 30 16:02:57 * Mackenzie lifts up his glasses. "As you can see, I am you. Rather, the real you. The new real you. The world you know has been altered, confused... And now I stand in your place. You are no longer anything but a fabrication, pieced together from dreams and fragments of what once was. ...And yet, I am here seeking you; in need of you. I must know more about what makes you so desirable
Oct 30 16:02:57 * Mackenzie that our enemies would alter reality itself to change you!"
Oct 30 16:07:21 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Mmm, quite the interesting tale, that of a world at odds with itself, where things begin to contradict and shift to suit nefarious purposes.  I am but an actor, a master of the stage.  I excel in both the theatre stage and the contest stage, where I am a light of hope to all actors, a shining beacon to all my fellow thespians that reminds them of what they should become.  I am the
Oct 30 16:07:21 <Aori_Radidjiu> most popular theatre actor in the world, and have led to a popular resurgence of exquisite theatre that has managed to make it catch up with the less refined medium of movies, where lesser actors get as many tries as they wish, where plot can be but an excuse and action a substitute for thought.  They have style, but they often lack substance, yes?"
Oct 30 16:09:17 <Mackenzie> "...Go on."  Convince me not to punch you.
Oct 30 16:10:03 <Mackenzie> 4f6+1 It's fine, I don't want to punch you, don't worry about it.
Oct 30 16:10:12 <Mackenzie> 4d6+1 It's fine, I don't want to punch you, don't worry about it.
Oct 30 16:10:12 <PsychoRoll> Mackenzie, It's fine, I don't want to punch you, don't worry about it.: 14 [4d6=2,1,4,6]
Oct 30 16:10:40 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Considering I'm the master of the contest circuit and the theatre, perhaps they twisted my talents to better suit their agenda?  Or maybe they tried to nudge me in a different direction, to train my talents in some other way that suits them?"
Oct 30 16:12:09 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I imagine impresonation, imitation, and guile are useful talents to a nefarious organization, yes?"
Oct 30 16:12:14 <Aori_Radidjiu> *impersonation
Oct 30 16:13:10 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I imagine an actor's talents are not too far removed to a con man, so they might have attempted to turn you down that path?"
Oct 30 16:14:42 <Mackenzie> "I will say this.  They have been manipulating actors to their ends.  One such actor, whom I have once considered a friendly acquaintance, was genetically altered to be more akin to a pokemon, and he was manipulated to act one of his roles in person, to attack a place they have been trying to get into."
Oct 30 16:15:32 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Mmm, so perhaps they wanted to push many with our talents toward such a path...interesting...I imagine they tried more because they had no guarantee it could work towards their ends, yes?"
Oct 30 16:16:38 <Mackenzie> "I am the greatest movie actor of my time.  I have inspired many to follow in my footsteps.  Many who may not have been as pure of mind and intention."
Oct 30 16:17:04 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Inspiration is a powerful thing, I'd say."
Oct 30 16:20:37 <Mackenzie> "But the powers capable of such evil, are capable of the same good in the right measure, no?"
Oct 30 16:21:04 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Yes, all things are balanced delicately, exquisitely.  What is good to some is evil to others."
Oct 30 16:22:46 <Mackenzie> "...Tell me, how are my pokemon?  Er, your pokemon."
Oct 30 16:27:06 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Ross is my most trusted, we have won the most contests together.  Veronica and Wilford also do admirably, I use them for other sorts and while I wouldn't say they're always on top, they're excellent.  Cindy is my personal bodyguard, less suited to contests but trained impeccably regardless.  Via Crucis is my go to for the tougher sort of contests, and along with Cindy is excellent
Oct 30 16:27:06 <Aori_Radidjiu> protection.  Krumm, my trusted Skarmory, is also an excellent Pokemon for ventures of the tougher or cooler sort.  And lastly, I have to admit I don't use Slugworth too much, but he evolved into a Noivern recently and I was quite pleased with him."
Oct 30 16:36:21 <Mackenzie> "I see.  The necessities of my journey have led me down the path of battle, so though my pokemon are mostly the same, their needs and performance levels are different.  Cindy and Veronica are my most dependable attackers.  Ross is invaluable anytime his type is not at a disadvantage.  Shuggy, my Noivern, is a terror on the field...  but somehow still adrorable.  Clawdia, my Clawitzer,
Oct 30 16:36:21 <Mackenzie> is versatile, featuring range and protection.  The others are still there...  Among more...  Including Carl, my Skarmory, but the versatility of the dangers I've faced have begun to make them harder to bring into the field."
Oct 30 16:38:23 <Aori_Radidjiu> He nods along.  "Your tastes seem to be a bit different, but similar enough."
Oct 30 16:39:15 <Mackenzie> "Oh...  And Eileen, too."  THAT'S YOUR CUE
Oct 30 16:40:37 <Aori_Radidjiu> Eileen gets up and walks to the stage, giving the other Mackenzie a bit of a curtsy.  "Eileen?  She seems more human to me."
Oct 30 16:41:07 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Ah, right."  Eileen shriiiinks down, down, down, into Meloetta Step Forme.  "Oh.  Oh my."
Oct 30 16:41:28 <Mackenzie> "Well, she's a legendary pokemon.  Those apparently have human forms."
Oct 30 16:41:36 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I have to say, I am a tad bit jealous that you should have a partner like that."
Oct 30 16:42:21 <Mackenzie> "Do you know her?  Or Jennifer, for that matter?"
Oct 30 16:46:13 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I dare say I don't know any of the fine ladies you've brought with you.  I apologize."
Oct 30 16:47:18 <Aori_Radidjiu> Jennifer shrugs.  "Considering he doesn't really do movies, I imagine he got a different agent."
Oct 30 16:47:32 <Mackenzie> "I see...  I dare say, without them, I likely would have been chow a long time ago."
Oct 30 16:49:35 <Aori_Radidjiu> He gives a bit of an exaggerated bow.  "Then I must thank them for taking good care of me."
Oct 30 16:50:47 <Aori_Radidjiu> Eileen gives a nervous giggle, whereas Jennifer replies flatly.  "You're welcome."
Oct 30 16:55:40 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Well, dear me, is there anything else you'd like to discuss?"
Oct 30 16:57:10 <Mackenzie> "Well...  As I've said, I face off against incredible perils from this group, and they're called Team Aether.  I came here, to meet you, to see if there was any way you could help me combat them.  Even if it's maybe not directly in the combat department."
Oct 30 16:57:53 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Hmmm, well, I imagine I can't assist you with combat, but I figure I might be able to leave a little something...here."  He sticks out his hand.
Oct 30 16:59:24 <Mackenzie> Mack extends his hand as well, not really sure if you can just take stuff out of the dream world.
Oct 30 17:01:52 <Aori_Radidjiu> He shakes your hand, and he dissolves into a fine mist that washes over you, the entire scene disintegrating and returning to the library.  Mother Swanna picks up the book she tossed down.  "It seems that one went well.  Are you ready for the next?"
Oct 30 17:03:14 <Mackenzie> Ohhh, it was just a hand shake.  He gets it now!  "Um.  Alright, sure."
Oct 30 17:03:24 <Lecia> Lecia was watching the whole time! Pondering, but...imagining she's just along for the ride this time around. That's still OK, though. She learns!
Oct 30 17:04:20 <Aori_Radidjiu> "All right then.  I hope you're ready."  She tosses down another book, the book stretching to create a scene of a room in a castle, and then...
Oct 30 17:04:29 <Aori_Radidjiu> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRAI9_MkmBM
Oct 30 17:07:09 <Aori_Radidjiu> It's accompanied by a Gallade by Indigo and a Bisharp by his opponent, both playing out a similar fight alongside their owners
Oct 30 17:09:54 <Aori_Radidjiu> After Indigo walks away, it's just you guys, him, and his Gallade, and he walks right up to you, just now noticing you.  "Hello, I have a friend to aid, if you do not mind."
Oct 30 17:15:25 <Mackenzie> "Indeed you do."  Even this dope can see that Indigo going to help Rogers is not at all unlike...  The guy who plays Indigo going to help the guy who plays Rogers.  "Would you mind if I joined you?  I...  have a personal investment in this how matter ends."  He draws Fragarach.
Oct 30 17:16:49 <Aori_Radidjiu> He smiles, and offers a hand.  "Who am I to refuse aid?  I imagine you're a good man too, so let's do it together."
Oct 30 17:17:55 * Mackenzie takes Indigo's hand, and shakes it firmly.
Oct 30 17:18:41 * Lenore (Revolution@Rizon-2078EF04.hsd1.in.comcast.net) has joined
Oct 30 17:18:42 * ChanServ sets mode +q on #SetSailAndExplore Lenore
Oct 30 17:18:42 * ChanServ gives channel operator status to Lenore
Oct 30 17:19:14 * Mackenzie takes Indigo's hand, and shakes it firmly.
Oct 30 17:19:52 <Lenore> He and the scene dissolve, leaving you back in the library, with you feeling a bit more...something.
Oct 30 17:20:01 <Lenore> "One more book." Mother Swanna says.
Oct 30 17:21:05 * Aori_Radidjiu has quit (Ping timeout: 240 seconds)
Oct 30 17:39:35 * Lenore is now known as Aori_Radidjiu
Oct 30 17:40:53 <Aori_Radidjiu> She tosses the book down, the book again stretching to encompass the world around you...you all are on a ship, a rather worn down one, nearby a more tidy looking one with men in clean uniforms, this ship and the other are exchanging cannon shots, and you see...
Oct 30 17:41:02 <Aori_Radidjiu> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODXfOmtse_A
Oct 30 17:44:24 <Aori_Radidjiu> There's the sound of the Endeavor's mast snapping, and then every person except for you all and John Spearow (along with a Clawitzer alongside him) left.  John looks at you, looks around, noticing everything's quiet, and then turns back to you.  "Clean outfits...everyone else is gone...that guy looks kind of like me, in a way..."
Oct 30 17:45:34 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Ah, yes, I guess my safe landing was either imagined or I landed a little too hard.  Figured I was dead anyway, s'pose not.  You here to take my soul away or some of that nonsense?  I thought that Davy Jones would be doing that, guess I'm either lucky..." he flips a coin in his hand. "Or extraordinarily unlucky."
Oct 30 17:49:07 <Mackenzie> Mack is starting to get what's going on.  "Guess it could always be worse."  He saunters over with Spearow's own sort of strange, floppy gait.  "Better in the hands of a real man than some slimy tentacle-faced git, aye?"
Oct 30 17:49:31 <Mackenzie> Mack extends his hand this time.
Oct 30 17:50:36 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Aye.  I'm wagering I'm more on the lucky side, considering the lovely ladies, although those could be some lasses I done forgot about...well, whatever you've got with me, I imagine it's better than Davy Jones or dealing with skeletons.  Something about your style...rather like me. Will there be more of me where I'm going?"  He extends the hand, but doesn't grab, his arm swaying a
Oct 30 17:50:37 <Aori_Radidjiu> bit.
Oct 30 17:51:47 <Mackenzie> "Well I suppose how many of me there are depends on how deep in the bottle you are."
Oct 30 17:53:07 <Aori_Radidjiu> "Flexible?  Good, good, I like me, so I can't help but say yes."  He grabs your hand, and it all dissolves, you feeling...a bit more like Cap'n John.  Back in the library.  Swanna picks up the last book.  "Are you satisfied?"
Oct 30 17:57:58 <Mackenzie> Mackenzie stands back in the library, more firm in his stance as he speaks.  "I understand now.  I was a man of theater, learned in the ways of discipline under all situations and pressures, rather than trying again and again until I get it right.  Similarly, my fighting style revolves around attempting great motions, but always having reliable movements, both offensively and
Oct 30 17:57:58 <Mackenzie> defensively, to fall back on so that I am not victim to luck."
Oct 30 17:58:06 <Mackenzie> "My greatest strength is in my allies.  Not in how they can help me, but in how I can help them.  Much like Indigo, who, in addition to his own convictions, always finds the time to be there for his friends.  And as for myself, I've got the same calm, nonchalant view of the battlefield that John Spearow does.  Able to move in and out of danger as if they were waves on the beach.
Oct 30 17:58:06 <Mackenzie> Unflappable and confident.  Incredible."
Oct 30 17:58:17 <Mackenzie> "Aether thought they had me by making me into something they could more easily manipulate.  And I might have made some monsters by inspiring others.  But they chose the wrong assets to grant me, and even though they succeeded in getting their soldiers, they've made me even more of a nightmare for them than I already was."
Oct 30 18:00:08 <Aori_Radidjiu> Swanna nods.  "Good to hear.  Good luck in your endeavors, Frazier."  She replaces the books on the bookcase and heads back for the tea table.  "I can wake you up now, if you like, or you can stay for tea for a bit like Lecia did."
Oct 30 18:00:44 <Mackenzie> "..."
Oct 30 18:00:47 <Lecia> "It's worth having, if you wanna stay a while~"
Oct 30 18:00:54 <Mackenzie> "Some tea would be lovely."
Oct 30 18:01:30 <Aori_Radidjiu> "I wouldn't mind some either."  Jennifer joins the table.  "And neither would I!"  Eileen sits down as well.
Oct 30 18:03:27 <Lecia> Hopefully there's room on the table! Lecia gets her spot back. Tea~
Oct 30 18:03:41 <Aori_Radidjiu> You all sit down to relax for a bit after that with some lovely tea~
Oct 30 18:03:43 <Aori_Radidjiu> </mini>