snowblindrpg | [network] @Bowman; late day 007; video [open]

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[network] @Bowman; late day 007; video [open]

[Okay, so maybe Bard slightly overestimated the deadliness of the overnight weather? Or this place is even worse than he thought, he's not yet sure which. But it's been another night and a day and he still can't see and it sounds like the network is behaving strangely, so he can't put off any longer the need to reveal his presence.

When the video begins, Bard is seated by a window, lit by the early evening sun. He seems no worse off than he was two nights ago, save for the way his eyes seem to be focused on something beyond the tablet rather than on the screen in front of him.]

I do not [kkkkkkkkkkkkkkk] still here. I [kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk]--ace means to torture us by violating the natural ord--[kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk] am merely recovering from having been [kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk]. I do not even know where I am, save for a day's walk from [kkkkkkkkkkkkkkk] in a bag on a shelf. What I [kkkkkkkkkk] am alive now, and I cannot see, which makes this place [kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk].

[And that's it. What else is there to say?]

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...what.

[What the hell, this is the last time he wastes most of a day looking for someone's dead body (except not really and he was glad for the excuse to nope away from the school) but what the hell and what is this staticky bullshit.]

Last time I- [kkkkkkkkk-wham-... oh, that's him trying to hit the device because everyone, regardless of era or culture, knows that the best way of getting a piece of electronics to work is by hitting it once. (It's not very effective.)]

[He'd be touched, really, but right now there are more important things to focus on, like what the hell indeed. There isn't much to go on conversation-wise, but Bard's tired and frustrated and hungry from trying to conserve his food, so he assumes most of what he's missing was going to be some sort of jerk comment.]

[kkkkkkkkkk] you, I'll be [kkkkkkkkkkk yeah he's just not even bothering to whack it into cooperating] everyone know I shall [kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk okay fuck it he's going to lift it up and try to get a better signal, so when the video comes back it's just a view of shadow and fading sunlight on the snow] death seems inevitable.

Are you [kkkkkkkkkkkk- wham!

And at this point he makes a disgruntled noise. The standard anime noise...you know. Tch or perhaps 'ch or something along those lines.] Man. They give us [kkkkkkkkkk for a pretty long time kkkkkkk] -ings an- [You thought he was about to get through and be able to say something? Hahaha, just kidding, bro, just kidding.] -nt work. You see that?

[Bard lowers his tablet and sighs, looking a little exasperated. Does Lancer mean metaphorically? Because that's the only way he's seeing anything right now.]

It's almost [here we go again] don't want any [kkkkkkkkkkkk] to each other.

...it's nothing. Thought I saw a [kkkkkkkkkkkkkk] wasn't sure if [kkkkkkkkkkkk intensifies] without eyes, you know.

[Valar-fucking-- you don't say shit like that to a guy who's newly blind and alone in a strange building. There's going to be a break of a couple minutes while he goes to listen out the front door for the faintest sound of a presence besides his own and finds nothing. When he does come back, he looks pretty damn serious.]

Did you [kkkkkkk] outside?

No. It wa- [kkkkkkkkkk] static. Can't believe I'm saying this, but [kkkk] maybe nothing.

[Static? Today's weird interference, Bard assumes. Which could mean... He frowns.]

Perhaps some--[kkkkkkkk] trying to use the network? Someone who isn't [kkkkkkkkkk]

[This is a long pause. Almost long enough tha- kkkkk -might think he hung up. Almost.

Because that's a fucking good thought.]

Maybe. Would explain the [kkkkkk] contact you [kkk] when these things work [kk] again.

You're n-- [kshhh] dead! [America is excited in the bits and pieces of video he can actually be seen in.] That obit--[kshhh]--st be totally wrong.

What do you [kssh] can't see?

[Oh hey, it sounds like the louder of the two fellows he ran into last night! Familiar faces--or, well, you know--are always nice, so Bard actually looks a little pleased in turn, even if his eyes still aren't quite focusing on the screen.]

It would appear tha--[kkkkkkk]--ver arts brought me [kkkkkkk]-ath's clutches could not do as much for [kkkkkkkk] or perhaps [kkkkk] still working on [kkkkkkkk] indeed, I remain not dead for [kkkkkkkkkkk]

[America frowns, trying to work out what exactly happened. The way the tablet cuts in and out isn't helping the general confusion of the situation. He has, at least, gotten the idea that video is pretty pointless right now, so he swaps to voice in the hopes it will make things a bit better. Of course, it doesn't really work.]

If you can't [ksssssh] find somewhere to stay? Any idea wh--[khh]--are?

[Since switching to voice doesn't seem to have improved America's signal, Bard doesn't bother making the extra effort to try it himself despite thoughts on earlier days about matching other people as a courtesy. His brow is furrowed from having first tried to decipher America's response and then figured out a response.]

I [kkkkkkkkk] away from the place I awoke in [kkkkkkk] for the best. [kkk] believe [kkkkk] moved away [kkkkk] northern wall, but obviously I can't say for certain.

[Bard can't see it, of course, but for those who can and when he's actually visible, he's huddled under a child's dinosaur comforter with the tablet propped up on a pillow. It's kind of ridiculous.]

More... --- ...aren't. If a bod-... --- found, I would suspect... --- ...is dying at all. But your sight is-...

[The noise lasts a particularly long time here, and it seems as if he is finished with whatever statement he was trying to make when it clears.]

There is something wrong with these tab-...

[And there it goes again.]

[Seriously, what is with these things? Is their magic busted or something? The noise is particularly eerie this time, almost like there's a living thing in there, which is just as likely as anything this day. Bard tries lifting his tablet again--say hello to the top of his head--but even that doesn't work for long.]

I would hope that we [kkkkkkkkkkkk]--er deaths, real or seeming, and never know why th--[kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk] yet against us. As for these accursed [kkkkkkkkk] [When the video comes back, he has returned his arm to its previous position, capable of but not seeing any particular benefit from keeping his tablet in the air indefinitely.] Perhaps [kkkkkkk]--ther, smaller torment from our captors.

I can hardl-... -- ...you, the disturbances from earlier... --- ...worse. Not entirely sure what you-...

[He, and anyone else, might simply refrain from using these under these conditions. It's difficult just to carry on a conversation. But they're their only way of communicating with anyone, and Enoch isn't willing to let that go. It's the seventh day without seeing another person.]

It wa--[kkkk] no consequence. [He frowns a little.] It would be better [kkkkkkkkkk]--rked, so we might find the source of these [kkkkkkk]

[While Bard has been more fortunate than Enoch as far as meeting people goes, he's no less reluctant to give up on the network: there's pretty much nothing to do while he's blind but talk to other people, even if the means of doing so are a piece of shit today.]

How does one find-...---...of something like this?

[He hasn't the first idea of how these devices work, much less how to fix them when something goes wrong.]

[Bard shrugs; when it comes to the tablets, he's not really any closer to understanding them than Enoch is.]

Magic? Tools [kkkkk] enough to disassemble these [kkkkkkkkkkkk] Neither of which [kkkkkkkkkkk] at the moment.

Magic.

[Something - or something like it - is something he should have, but doesn't. It doesn't fill him with hope, since it wasn't just magic he had. It was a blessing, and the only place he'd ever known to nullify anything holy was The Darkness - and even then, it never interfered with his armor, only twisted the way it manifested.]

If everyone-... --- ...nobody would have. I don't know how, but they've sealed-...

[That gets a frown; even without the obscured parts, Enoch's situation sounds familiar.]

You are the seco--[kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk--yeah, this one's going to take a minute] doesn't. I know it came up in [kkkkkkkkkkkk] days ago, but the [kkkkk] hear of it [kkkkk] I think it is something deserving of conside--[kkkkk]

Was A-... -- ...one? The powers I... --- ...nobody should-...

[Is it him, or is this getting worse? He could swear it wasn't quite this bad earlier in the day.]

The interruptions seem-...

[It's not going to let him finish a sentence, it seems.]

[So this message is kind of hard to make out, but not so much that Clayton can't parse the important bits. He gleans a few things:

1) Amnesia. This is a frighteningly familiar symptom.

2) "Bag on a shelf" is also very, very familiar.

3) He's "alive now," which means that even though Clayton hasn't rechecked the most recent obituary to connect his username to his face, he's pretty sure this means he's been revived from apparent death.

4) He's blind? That's new.

5) Something seems to be wrong with his tablet.

He decides to start from the bottom. As Clayton is having difficulty loading the other messages, he goes into this blind. Figuratively speaking.]

Can you repe-- [kzzzzzt] --that? Somethin'-- [crackle crackle whap as Clayton smacks the side of the tablet] wrong with my tablet, keep-- [kzzzzt, more fruitless patting at the tablet's side before he realizes that this isn't helping] --missin' bits. Can you hear me alright over there?

[The lack of fancy elaboration seems to have helped, at least in Clayton's case, and it's not like Bard has better things to do than repeat himself on the network.]

I thought I was going to die in my sleep, but then I woke up in a strange part of this place without my sight.

[...And of course that whole sentence went off without a hitch. Maybe the network's getting--kkkkkkkkkkKKKKKKSSSSEEEEEEEEEEErrrrrrrrrkkkkkkkkk]

[Bless the network. Clayton waits patiently for his tablet to stop freaking out on him, which gives him time to really think about the fact that, yes, Bard thinks he died and woke up without his sight. Or more importantly, that he remembers the lead-up.]

...Huh. [Clayton scratches his head while the feed flickers again.] You were caught out-- [kzzzt] right? Think I s-- [ksssssssst, a small curse from Clayton] --saw your message, didn't watch it all the-- [goddamn network scrambling jesus christ] --alright this is gettin' ridiculous. You think you can get your-- [kzzzzSSSSSSSSHHHHH nope he's just talking right through this one] --text-to-voice? Think those're workin' little better'n video.

[Well, it's worth a shot anyway. Except, when Bard switches input methods and tries sending a transcribed response, it doesn't go through at all. Finally he just gives up and goes back to video.]

Not for me, [kkkkkkk] seem. To answer your previous [kkkkkkkkkkk] managed to get myself locked [kkkk sigh come on] night prior to all this.

...I believe something sim--[kkkkkk] to you?

[Ah well, worth a shot. Just to see if it works any better, Clayton switches to text and hopes Bard has figured out how to get his tablet to read to him.]

[It takes a very long time for his message to go through. But it does! Eventually!]

Trying this instead; if I don't hear back from you in a few minutes, I'll switch back to video and repeat.

Yeah, that's what I was afraid of. No memory loss?

[Clayton is far more patient than Bard, at least in this matter. He does have the text-to-voice feature taken care of, though, so after much waiting he gets to hear what Clayton's saying. (Amazing how quickly one adapts to instant communication after a lifetime without.)]

Nothing that [kkkkk] already happening before I got here. [That's an old man joke.] It seems to [kkkkkkkk] the same problem if we were revived [kkkkkkkkk] means.

[Clayton has plenty of time while he waits for his message to go through to appreciate and laugh at that joke.]

Tell me about it. So people experience different side-effects on revival? [That's what he's interpreting Bard's message as--this one was a little more difficult to parse than some of the others.] A range of the same side-effects I could understand, but memory loss to blinding is a little harder to believe. Either we need a larger sample size--which I hope doesn't happen--or we're missing something.

[England isn't one to get attached to strangers very easily, but he had to admit that seeing the name of the man they had met a few days ago on the obituary had him a little shaken, regardless of how he'd felt about running into someone else in the house.]

So you're-- [kccchchtchhhhsh] --a relief. That's not the sort of news you want to h- [sst] -bout [fssh] acquaintance, brief though our meeting-- [ssshchhhch...]

--raises some interesting questions, though none worth-- [ksssttchsh] --I'm sure you don't know any better than we do.

[Or he better not. England would be very cross. The possibility has definitely entered his mind; he's more suspicious of people than usual today, somehow. He's able to refrain from accusations for the sake of politeness, at least for now.]

I digress. [fsssstshsh] --find something to assist you in navigating, if you're unable to see.

[Ordinarily Bard might be as slow to warm up to people as England, but he's been up to his neck in band-together-or-die situations since before he even got here, so every familiar name, face, and voice is precious. Now even more so than ever, lost as he is, which is why that slightly accusatory phrasing at the end only causes a vague guilty feeling instead of ringing all his alarm bells.]

Rest assu--[kkkkkkkk] doing my best to avoid coming so close to [kkkkk] the future. [kkkkkkkk] wish now I had thought to [kkkkkkkkkk] was anything wor--[kkkkk]--ing out of that place I woke up in. Well, not see, of course [he gestures at his eyes, still unfocused but otherwise clear] but [kkkkkkkkk] bit. I wonder if they knew that would [kkkkk]

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[network] @Bowman; late day 007; video [open]

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video; ID: starspangledhero

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voice

still video

@Enoch; video

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video - ID: claytonator

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-> text

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voice; ID: SceptredIsle

video because eh effort