snowblindrpg | [network] @IAmLegend; video; Day 182 [open]

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[network] @IAmLegend; video; Day 182 [open]

In case anyone hasn't spoken to a friend for obvious reasons, we seem to have all cooled off. I know now might not seem like the best time, but after what happened it's more important to keep in contact with each other and stay with people.

[Tony really wishes Steve were here. It should be him making this kind of announcement.]

What happened the day before wasn't an accident. It was something, the town maybe, trying to reach out and assert its influence over all of us. And if we react by dropping the work everyone has done so far? It wins. It gets exactly what it wants, because all of us break apart, making us easier to pick off. Or we give up. What we should be doing is pushing back and finding out who the prophet really is. We need to try to figure out what they intend to do for our own safety.

If there's anything I can do to help the rest of you, I still intend to do that. I'm not going to stop. I want everyone to be safe. And the best way to help each other is communication. Like the man said yesterday, don't shut down. He's a good guy.

So, on that note, my name is Tony Stark. I'm considered a superhero on the Earth I come from. We handle organizations that want to endanger the world, the occasional intergalactic threat, and... Things like this when they happen. Some of you might consider that a police force, but we're more of a general emergency response solution. I just want to give you a fair idea of who I am.

[He's holding the tablet up so he can address them properly, and raises his off-hand to gesture.]

Also, I have questions. First, how are your eyes? If you are still showing signs of change, I'd like to know. Do you feel different? Secondly, if you are alone right now and weren't with someone when this started, please check in. Let us know everyone is still here and no one is stranded without help. And if you have questions, today I'm going to be completely open.

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[ Hey, she's traumatized. She'll say it if he doesn't want to. ]

Figures just when I'm starting to get comfortable with the status quo it goes and changes on us. But this is the kind of thing we've planned for. We knew this could happen. It just did, that's all.

The status quo here is meant to throw us off. We're not supposed to settle in, because whatever this is, it's meant to hurt.

[And it's succeeding.]

But you're right. We knew this could happen. So now we can take it or we can make our move.

Edited 2016-12-02 05:34 (UTC)

You say that like we've got a move to make.

We do. We can prepare each other and make sure we have a plan to work together when the next attack hits. I don't think they'll try the same trick twice. The Prophet or the rogue force that's trying to get to us is going to hit us while we're still focusing on each other as the immediate threat.

That's what I would do if I were a malevolent ghost mob.

But there aren't forces to muster against. We don't even know what the attack will look like. That's the whole problem, we don't know what to expect.

We don't know specifics, but that doesn't mean we can't be ready. We're heroes.

[This is their job, right?]

We know that the Prophet is trying to split up sympathizers and turn them against anyone else in the town. They failed in getting us to physically stop everyone, because if they had succeeded, the effects wouldn't linger. It's an energy signature. A signal. So the people still showing signs will probably be the targets or at least the first ones to see any new developments. They're still in tune with the energy that hit us. We need to stay in contact. Anyone still showing effects needs to share the moment that something happens. An off feeling. A vision. Those of us not still affected may be able to provide support.

I know it's bad. We have to wait for the next move, but we can react faster if we agree to cooperate.

We don't know that, actually. We don't have any evidence that the Prophet is still alive, or responsible for anything that's happened here. We don't know what the goal was. We do know that it isn't over, but we don't know that it's because they failed.

But you're right about the rest.

Okay, fine, the "prophet" being whatever force is behind the crazy behavior. It could be a rogue program infecting our nanite functions. Or a real person using some other method of mind-control to confuse us. I don't care if they are really the Prophet we keep hearing about or not. It's just a name.

If it didn't fail, then why are some people still showing symptoms? If this is just stage two, then more people should have the same eyes. Why drop the crazy when we have no way to fight off the effects? Something happened.

Unless this is all just a test.

Some assumptions can limit our thinking. And it's still possible the Prophet is an active player and not responsible for the craziness. It wouldn't be the first time a cult formed around someone with genuinely good intentions.

If it's a glitch, it could be that the people still showing symptoms weren't able to... I don't know, purge the virus? It wouldn't even have to be the result of a major, noticeable variation in physiology.

The doors are a clue, I think, and the way we all woke up where we had started the night. It was like we were being quarantined.

[He smiles a little at Steph's analysis. That's a good point, and despite the terrible circumstances, Tony is glad that someone else is looking at possibilities.]

So maybe my thinking is too limited?

Lack of resistance. Well, even if that's true, there's still a chance it'll cause another reaction. Secondary symptoms after the initial outbreak?

[He bites his lip, thinking over what she says.]

Quarantined? Why? We were all affected.

[ She may feel terrible, but she can compartmentalize. ]

None of the damage inflicted on the town lasted, right? Think sleepwalking. You may dream you're walking down a straight corridor and end up falling down a flight of stairs. Maybe the reason none of us moved is because the doors were actually locked the whole time.

You think it didn't really happen.

[He nods slowly, thinking back to what he can remember. It's somewhat unreliable because of the way he was thinking then. Maybe she's right. Would he have recognized reality?]

But if that's true, then that means we were sharing dreams that felt real.

It wouldn't be the first time.

[ Just ask Bucky, she wants to say, but she doesn't want to share their dream experience. ]

What happened the first time?

[You can't just say that and leave it, Steph.]

[ She can leave out specifics, though! ]

When we shared each other's dreams. We were mostly aware it was a dream, but the actions we took were real as anything.

Can you tell me what it was like?

[He's a tech fanatic. He needs those details to figure out what was going on.]

[ She makes a face. Of course he wants to know. ]

There was the big shared dream, where we were all just kind of floating in darkness. But there were other dreams, too, shared ones. And it was like... like a normal dream, but then someone shows up and you realize, this isn't right. And you could just tell. You were still dreaming, and you didn't have total control, but the people were real. Or the other way around, you find yourself in a strange place and after a minute you realize it has to be a dream. You can't control it at all, but you can move around and do things just as easily as if you were awake.

[Obviously he needs to know! He wasn't there and this could be useful information.]

Interesting. Did anyone try to take control of the dream when it happened? I assume you might have since you said it didn't work, but was anyone able to change anything? Even if it was something small?

[ Her lip quirks in a half-hearted smile. ]

Oh, everyone tried to change things. But you can't wish away a nightmare.

No... Maybe not. But it wasn't just a nightmare.

[He actually seems thoughtful rather than sad. There's a bit of determination in him that comes from dealing with tech rather than emotional problems.]

Did anything seem like it was changed by you? Even something small.

Not a damned thing.

Damn.

[It was worth a try, though.]

I'm sorry.

Yeah. Me too.

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[network] @IAmLegend; video; Day 182 [open]

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