[network; video] @blacksuit; unknown maps; backdated to Night 64 [open]

[luckystarlimit]

[The feed shows a pile of papers that, on closer examination, looks like someone was interrupted in the middle of grading homework. Particularly, the camera focuses on some maps of North America with states labelled, some more successfully than others. A deliberate shot, as Cissnei's voice over the feed betrays.]

I was hoping I might find something useful in all this homework - just because the kids here learned it as standard doesn't mean there might not be a clue that would help us, right? But the only thing I've really found are these maps and, well. They don't look familiar to me. That's where you guys come in.

[She focuses the camera more closely on one of the more highly-graded papers so everyone can see how it's labelled.]

I know some people are from worlds that are more similar to this one than mine. So I thought I'd see if these maps are familiar to anyone - and if they are, if there's anything about these that strikes them as unusual or not quite what they'd expect. It's a long shot, I know, but I'll feel better for knowing I haven't ignored something that might have been important.

[And okay. Maybe she misses talking to people. Her current company has not been particularly sociable of late.]

Comments

@starspangledhero; video

[fifty]

They're labeling states! From, uh, the United States. Which is a country. [America tends to just assume that's standard knowledge for everyone, so the additional information is more of an afterthought.] When I'm from there's fifty, though.

video

[luckystarlimit]

Hmm...so one of these states isn't familiar to you?

[That might be relevant. Then again, it might not. Not like Cissnei has much of anything to compare his comment to, yet.]

What about the rest? Are they are you remember them?

[fifty]

All present and accounted for, yeah! And really I know Puerto Rico, too, 'cause it's still my territory even if it's not a state for me.

[luckystarlimit]

Your territory? So...you oversee this whole country? By yourself, or...?

[Because this is probably more territory even than Shinra has control over and their influence spans most of the world as Cissnei knows it.]

Either way, that would seem to mean we're at least in a very similar world to the one you know, if that's the case.

[fifty]

I'm a personification of the United States of America. [Which is immediately glossed over, because America has come to expect disbelief by now.] Apparently we're in Alaska, so yeah, I know the basics. I mean, Puerto Rico's held votes about if they want to be a state before, so if this is some future alternate USA, then it might not be that different from mine, except mine doesn't have weird snowy apocalypse towns like this one.

[luckystarlimit]

So...like a god, then?

[That's the closest approximation she has, where it comes to what power and influence he might over a country, and even that holds shades of doubt.

It's not the politics that has her attention, though, not after that last part.]

Well I figured the apocalypse part was unusual. You're saying the weather patterns are, too?

[fifty]

Er-- [It's not clear which part has struck him, really. Even America wouldn't call himself a god, though, so he pauses to clarify.] Not a god, just, like--a guy who's, like-- [He waves one of his hands in the air vaguely.] Also a culture? Or something.

Anyway, Alaska's cold, and some places get a lot of snow, but not like this and for this long. Well, maybe in the mountains, but there aren't a lot of towns on permanently snowy mountains.

[luckystarlimit]

That sounds...complicated.

[And not like anything she really has words for to sum up as a concept. Not that she has to be able to do that to wonder one or two other things.]

But then...does that mean you have an innate connection to the place? Or have they dampened that now you're here?

[If they could do it to the SOLDIERs she knows, no reason they can't do it to others.]

[fifty]

I don't have a connection to this place, but I've got one to the America I'm from. It's still there but it's, like... Frozen? It feels like everything is stuck the way it was before I got here.

[luckystarlimit]

So either they've frozen your version of this place somehow or they've dampened it but can't get rid of it completely.

[Right now her money's on the latter but who knows what this place is capable of, really.]

[fifty]

It's gotta be the second one. [America's answer is immediate and certain, but there's a bit of an emotional edge to it; he needs that version to be true, because if he's caused his people to be frozen for two months he'd feel absolutely awful.] It makes sense they couldn't get rid of it totally 'cause it's sort of what I am.

[luckystarlimit]

So there are limits on what they can do. I wonder if that's just for the world you're from or if there might be other powers they can't fully take away.

[Powers being the easiest catch-all she can think of here.]

audio ; @lovesya

[victorytothesexy]

Whoa!

[That's all you get for a while; a sudden gasp from the network, accompanied with a little bit of fumbling noises when Zelos fights to get a better grip of his device.]

Are those... maps? Man, who would've thought homework could actually be useful, for once. [Not him, he never did his own. Thanks, girls at his academy!] Never seen a landmass like that before, but it can't hurt to have an actual map of the continent we're stuck on, right? Could be pretty big.