{VOICE OTA}

[rootandbranch]

[Today you feel a few strange pulses in your signets before you hear anything over Qri's network. It's fairly pleasant, exactly as the signet communications tend to be, and fortunately doesn't at all resemble the strange fluctuations that plagued everyone back on days 103-105. It's more like someone poking at the network to be sure it's stable and not going to do any more of that before they speak. They seem to conclude it's safe after all.]

Hello? Oh, hi-- hi, everybody. It's Geir. If you don't know me, I'm the dragon.

[He's very matter of fact about it. He's the dragon. You're probably aware, his tone seems to say.]

Listen, I don't actually care if you know me, you should just help me and Nines out! He knows all kinds of technology things, so I asked him what we could find out about the Hub with them. But the question is really, what does everyone want to find out? There's been a lot of weird to chew on!

Chew...on? [9S echoes this thought quizzically, for an instant quite distracted. But right, right, the matter at hand—] Er, anyway, like Geir said we’re lacking data on our surroundings. And to know what we’re dealing with, gathering more would be best, so I was thinking I can probably scrape enough parts together to build a pod for that job, once we know what kind of information it should collect. I mean, unless we want everything...

[Geir's tone is still bright and interested. he loves hearing about this, even if part of him is still skeptical.]

Nines isn't even the only person who knows how to build... robots. I know a bunch of you build stuff. Who wants to help?

[9S clears his throat, quietly tacking a little disclaimer on:]

...Not that pods should be mistaken for machines or anything.

[When your kind’s fought machines for millennia certain lines get drawn. Thin, confusing grey lines. (Geir doesn’t know what to say to that, so he just lets it stand.)]


((both 9S and Geir may reply to your toplevels, and also feel free to jump each other! this is the start of a player plot to get a little more technology on the island. ♥ more details here!))

Comments

[deem]

Personal?

[How personal, he might ask.

But he doubts there's something she could want to know that really touches upon things that would lead him to obfuscate information for dear life]

Sure, what'd you want to know?

[witchhooded]

[ nothing personal-personal. she just feels like this is a personal question... ]

What do you mean by "someone like me"?

[deem]

Oh.

[Well, that's no big deal]

I'm an android. A YoRHa unit, to be more specific. We're a little different from standard units.

[witchhooded]

[ phew. she was worried it might be a rude question. ]

I see! You must be pretty special, then. What is it that makes you different from the pods? Model and make...?

[deem]

Something like that. We're also the ones who made pods, and they're something like...assistants? We were made in the image of our creators, on the other hand.

[And so their bodies are definitely not the same]

2B and A2 are also YoRHa units. We're all different types, but they're both combat models, where I have more of a supporting role. Maintenance, scouting, that sort of thing.

[witchhooded]

[ very, very cool. ]

Assistants makes sense! So it is like you are part of a company together, but you have higher rank, if I am understanding right.

[deem]

I guess I've never really looked at it that way. It's just sort of how thing work, I guess? A pod is assigned to a specific unit for deployment in the field, like Pod 153 was assigned to me.

[And then he taught it such useful things as "nice to meet you!"

Also fistbumps. And patted it a lot]

[witchhooded]

Your own little assistant is pretty cool, though! They all had their own personalities and stuff, right? What about Pod 153?

[deem]

I'd have to think about that...

[Since he hasn't really pondered his pod's personality before]

But I guess pods are loyal. And Pod 153 likes being cared for, even though those gestures aren't necessary. [Maybe that's the first assertion that was framed to him in the form of a preference or a want, come to think of it] All pods are diligent and work closely with us, but it decided it wanted to keep me safe, whatever the circumstances.

[witchhooded]

Oh! Like Bec!!

[ yes, okay, yes, this makes sense, the pods are like puppies. she loves them now. ] That sounds really nice, I hope you get reunited with Pod 153. Is that the only name it has?

[deem]

Bec?

[Is that the slumber-bot she poke of earlier, or...?]

Pod 153 is its name. Why would it have another one?

[witchhooded]

You have never wanted to call it by a nickname, or something more unique? There are lots of pods, I bet, but a real and personal name might make it happy!

[deem]

The thing is, it's the only Pod 153 there is. In contrast, there are more 9S units than just me. So I've never thought about it as not being unique.

[witchhooded]

I think Poddie would be really cute!!! As for you... what about we give you a nickname too?

[deem]

Oh, my friends call me Nines... Do you have a nickname though?

[witchhooded]

They can call you Nines but that's pretty much the same as your name... As for myself, people have called me different things, so there is no set nickname, hehehe. If you don't want one you don't have to have one, but I was just thinking it might make you feel more like yourself... In a way.

[deem]

I'm pretty attached to the one I've got.

[And he sort of thought the point was that it was based on his name, so he likes that]

I know humans worry about being distinct or unique, but even if there were a hundred 9S models around, I'd still be the one with my memories.