@w.graham; night 299 - video [ Let reports of questionable life choices continue! ]

[ex_this_ismydesign36]

[OOC - CW: Mention of self harm]

[ Good evening fellow snobos, it would appear that the reports of questionable life choices continues to roll in; Rhys started a trend.

It is another video, coming from the user name w.graham and featuring that same gentleman. It’s hard to tell if he looks worse than before, because he tended to look terrible in general. What is different is he looks a bit more exasperated than he had the last time.

As he takes a breath to start speaking, the voice of one Gregory House, comes across first, calling from somewhere off screen. ]

Don't forget to call them snowhellions! And remember it's Hotstud first! Then Graham Cracker.

[ Will just sighs and rubs his hand over his face, before he gets started. ]



Good evening.

House and I have a couple of new discoveries we've been tracking over the past week or two and inspired by Rhys, we thought we'd share...

First things first! If you change something in a place, freaking tell me. I maintain the building guide and map, people. Contrary to popular opinion, I'm not psychic. You move crap, paint new symbols, or smash in symbols tell me. And get before and after pics. I don't need a conversation. Neither of us wants a conversation, just where, what, and pics or it didn't happen!

[ Will pauses for a moment, his eyes casting towards the direction the voice is speaking, and he’ll inquire, with polite sarcasm. ]

Done? [ There is a pause and a slight narrowing of his eyes, before he remarks in a flat tone. ] As a doctor you know that’s a physical impossibility.

[ A pause, an eyebrow lift -the rude gestures were getting more creative here- and Will shook his head and turned back to the camera. ]

I’ve been told to keep this short, so here goes. We also discovered in building 217 that a combination of blood and fire will result in instant cult membership. [ Here Will rolled up his sleeve, exposing his forearm, complete with healing laceration and the prophet eye burned into the skin above where he’d sliced himself open.

After giving the audience a good view he lowered his arm and took a breath, only to be interrupted again. ]

Don't let Graham Cracker sell you on the platinum membership, folks. The fees include your first-born child, two pints of blood, and a patch of skin. And that doesn't even get you access to the topless lounge. But if you're really in for it, just drip some blood, light a little fire, and you’re good to go. Matching brands and everything.

Did you want to do this? Because I can turn this camera around and... yeah, that’s what I thought.

In building 213 we tried a little tyger, tyger burning bright at night. For those of you who have just arrived, that is the building where Winter died. Apparently if you set the walls on fire, it makes them scream. Like a woman, or a child and the screaming only lets up once the fire wanes.

I think we should light a fire somewhere else. Test this more thoroughly; we’d need a lot more wood though.

Or some bodies.

And this is why people don't wanna be friends with you, Graham Cracker.

Okay back to what matters. Woman or child makes me think Winter or Sam, take your pick. Also the knives stuck in there still won't come out but I couldn't taste anything interesting on 'em.

We do have record of the screaming, if anyone wants to listen for themselves.

Finally the pool in building 216 is a bust. We cracked open the eyes at the bottom, I tried to get a read on the scene, but came up blank, and Mr. Oral fixation over here tried tasting the paint, nothing.

About the only evidence we could nail down was that the symbols look like they were all done around the same time, at least, and same color, but no way to tell if it was more than one person.

[ House's disembodied voice is still coming from somewhere off screen as he takes the wrap-up. ]

Anyone else wanna share? Already tracking the magic brigade over at the high school so we can skip that.

[OOC: House is all comments in blue
Will is all comments in purple
Responses will come from both of them! Assume House is audio only, unless otherwise noted in the comment header! ]

Comments

cw:self harm

[ex_this_ismydesign36]

It did. And got colder still when I opened my arm. It didn't change, until we lit the fire and the prophet got in on the party.

[holmesice]

A signal from the 'Prophet program' to continue with whatever ritual they were doing, or perhaps an effect that was already there.

Ancient civilizations would sometimes build shrines on places of 'power', as ridiculous as that is. What if that particular place affects nanomachines badly? A glitch, an error, whatever the reason, and they built their little thing there, for people to 'appease' with burned nanomachines.

The brand could simply be the program's version of a 'receipt', or an automatic way for the cultists to identify other cultists--otherwise known as people willing to do terrible things to keep this town running.

The implications of that, gentlemen, I leave to you.

[If he was using audio, gentlemen would have been said with all sarcasm and disdain.]

@beyonce | audio

[thewarningafter]

Ridiculous, and yet common to a surprising number of human cultures. One might almost begin to wonder if what you described might just be a parallel to older forces already in existence. I don't doubt this place's problems are largely technological, but natural law doesn't stop existing just because humans have come up with new ways of doing things.

[Sorry, Mycroft, someone's feeling a little bitchy. Might have something to do with whose network post this is.]

[holmesice]

What are you suggesting? Weak spots in reality? Magic? Occam's Razor. It's far simpler for it to be technological in origin.

[thewarningafter]

Is it? Is it really? There's an eldritch horror under this town and yes, it's tied into the computer network, but that doesn't mean the network is the only thing having an effect on our surroundings.

[holmesice]

Is there an 'eldritch horror'? Can you prove that?

[thewarningafter]

Can you prove that there isn't? Think about it, and this time try to let go of your preconceptions. We're talking about a world that was likely unshielded, where we have concrete evidence in our own presence that they at some point established contact with other universes. Worse than that, we have concrete evidence that whatever they did bypasses the interdimensional shield maintained around my world; I wouldn't be here if they hadn't. There's an entire multiverse out there, some benevolent, some just waiting for the chance to eat us up, and you're going to tell me that technological advancements to this level is a simpler answer than one of the neighbors noticing these people had left the front door open and letting themself in?

If you leave the front door open and the house is a wreck when you get home, logic dictates a break-in, not that your dog attained human consciousness and decided to fence all your stuff.

[rubikscomplex]

[House is just going to jump in out of scientific irritation here. He doesn't particularly like Mycroft, but it's the principle.]

You're asking him to prove a negative? Less sorcery, more doctoring, Stranger Danger. You're forgetting basic principles. Interdimensional travel does not an eldritch horror require. Your analogy is flawed. What you're saying is it's more logical to assume some other-world, here-to-for-unproven to exist magical being went in and wrecked your house. Rather than the more logical human asshole.

[thewarningafter]

Oh, well, if we're just going to ignore known phenomena and completely set aside any consideration of what would be typical, expected side effects of interdimensional contact because the implications offend our sensibilities -- yeah, in that case you've got a point.

[rubikscomplex]

Whining doesn't suit you. Maybe take a few extra of my pills and mellow out, bro. And then go back and take a basic science course. Or say it with me: 'I cannot prove a negative.'

[thewarningafter]

So prove the alternative. Give me evidence that this human society was capable of making the kind of technological leap that you're talking about. Show me a reason I should dismiss a very real possibility that isn't just your discomfort at the prospect of expanding your world view.

[No denial of the accusation, only a push forward on the argument itself. He simply won't address it.]

[rubikscomplex]

You're asking me to prove what you can observe yourself? We're here. The nanomachines can alter everything from our perceptions to the way we think. Our devices are mini-quantum computers. We've already seen evidence to support some other quantum entanglement tech. This is the basis for what you would need to develop the kind of tech we're talking about. Quod erat demonstrandum.

This isn't about my world view. This is about what's been demonstrably shown to be going on here.

[thewarningafter]

[Too many good points. When did this become about proving House wrong instead of reminding everyone that there's another possible dimension to what they're experiencing?]

And the Beast? Just, what, a figment of our infested imaginations?

[rubikscomplex]

Not a figment. It's a program. We're filled with nanomachines. It's the representation of whatever it is that's screwing with the system. I'm guessing it was one of our cultists who gave it that designation. Very spiritual.

[thewarningafter]

Whatever it is.

[A.k.a. that thing they can't identify that could be Cthulu's cousin, thank you very much.]

Traditions happen for a reason. Spiritual practices come about for a reason.

[rubikscomplex]

Whatever variety of program it is.

Spiritual practices and traditions come about because people can't stand not having an explanation for something.

Oh, no! What's that white sparky stuff in the sky that set the forest on fire? Must be the god of thunder, pissed off. Better sacrifice a virgin to him and then we won't have any thunderstorms for another year.

Traditions start because people want a way to commemorate an event or because someone needs to ascribe a higher meaning to something mundane to feel better about themselves. If there's a higher meaning, if there's some greater reason, then the universe isn't just some unimaginably cold and random place.

[ex_this_ismydesign36]

Actually I'm not so sure the cultists were originally to blame for what was happening in this town.

At least, I don't think it was so cut and dry.

[holmesice]

Neither do I. I believe that the errors and glitches came before. The cult arose in some, typically human, mistaken reaction to the errors and glitches, possibly even caused by them--resulting in poor decision making.

It begs the question--why blood and fire? There are easier ways to kill, different ways to make sacrifices. Other than some odd preference, they probably were affecting the system somehow.

[ex_this_ismydesign36]

One of my working theories is this town was an experiment in behavioral programing. Perhaps part of the nanomachines original purpose was to work to calm the population, weed out aggressive acts like robbery, abuse, murder.

Only human beings fight for free will. So I find myself asking the question, if people began to protest, an act of defiance, and the experiment stakeholders increased the effects of the experiment, only that increased the defiance you end up in a destructive cycle.

Might also explain why, at the end, someone made the decision to send in the missles.

[holmesice]

That is an acceptable theory, however why Norfinbury? A small town in Alaska, even an experimental one, unless it was purposefully populated with society's unwanteds, would not have enough aggressive acts for it to be statistically significant.

Granted, perhaps the system was not completely reliable yet and they did not want to risk a large number of actual criminals until they were sure their systems worked properly, and a peaceful town would be a safer initial experiment.

For the missiles to have been used not as a weapon of war, but as a direct means to stop the town, whatever was brewing in here threatened the rest of the world, threatened to escape the walls of this town.

[ex_this_ismydesign36]

It is my understanding that Norfinbury was not unique. That there were similar goings on in other towns but as we're cut off we only have historical data to go on with no definitive proof.

The application of the missiles, I agree with your theories, or threatened to embarrass someone. Though a nuclear strike tends to bring more press, rather than less, so I'm more inclined to go along the lines that something dangerous was at risk of escaping the experiment and the decision was made to pull the plug.

Except they only managed to get it partially out of the wall socket.

[holmesice]

Yes, all we have is conjecture without data, which isn't the best thing to be going on.

Something would have to be threatening the existence of a country were they to resort to using nuclear weapons, unless something drastic had happened in this century to prompt the use of said weapons wantonly.

[ex_this_ismydesign36]

[ Something about the way he phrased that 'would have to be threatening the existence ...' suggested a man who knew what he was talking about. ]

It's not optimal, but if conjecture is all we have to go on until we can find the next piece of the puzzle, then we do our best to make it work.

Alright, so it could be a safe assumption that whatever happened here posed a risk to the population as a whole. That a literal 'scorched earth' approach was necessary, rather than merely expedient.

[ Will went quiet for a moment, before he added. ]

Unless ... a nuclear option offered two birds with one stone. Conventional destruction, and a ground zero EMP blast.

[holmesice]

[Oh yes. And planned for many a contingency.]

That is a very good point. [High praise, Will.] The question arises, however, of why they didn't send more? The town isn't completely destroyed, and if the EMP worked, clearly it didn't reach underground, or the underground complex was shielded . Perhaps they were overconfident and assumed 'they got it'? I find that unlikely, considering the level of risk that would have to exist for the nuclear option to be used. At the very least, they would do reconnaissance. It's likely that whatever posed a risk here managed to survive, and retaliate.

[Were there missiles that they had access to? Was the rogue AI responsible for the apocalypse?]

Furthermore, if the Prophet cult arose after the missiles came and the town destroyed, any proper reconnaissance would easily pick that up. It's possible there's some level of high-tech nonsense that shields this place from satellites and aircraft, but if that technology existed, then why didn't they shield this place originally so there would be no prying eyes? And tech like that would have to be well-known by whoever was monitoring this place.

Also, admittedly as I'm not too familiar with rural life in Alaska, there would be interaction eventually. The post, the national guard, the military--why has the outside world failed to make an impact here? The only thing we can presume from that is--they simply could not.

[ex_this_ismydesign36]

All good questions but unfortunately no hard fact answers.

[ Which he is willing to admit. ]

These are all just working theories. A place to start when trying to decide what steps to take next.

It's either that or just run around here from food source to food source, until our gracious hosts decide to eliminate us all and start over again.