Comms NPC Side Story (Comms) Turn of the New Day

[Harper]

"Well, can't say I'd fare much better than them, I just brought a gift and act nice enough not to upset her, so just barely above the bare minimum. I'm really glad you are here to pick up our slack."

She said with a somewhat tired sigh, resting a hand on Chako's shoulder as she looked at the baby. Upon hearing the felis' wishes for Emmie's future, the tigress closed her eyes for a moment, before looking back at the maid with a smile.

"You know what my dad liked to say? Not everyone gets to be great, regardless of how much effort and tears you pour into it. Sometimes fate will just deal you a bad hand."She stopped for a moment, looking nowhere in particular as she seemed to trail off in thought, before glancing back towards Chako with a warm smile."But as long as they do put in the effort, anyone can achieve greatness, regardless of their origins and situations."

Extending a finger, she gave the baby a playful boop on the nose.

"So I say: Let the future come as it pleases. For now, let's make sure Emmie gets to enjoy life right. Like any kid should."

@Chako

 

[Chako]

"Mmmmmmm... Not doing anything bad is a good thing in itself. You didn't leave Emmie unattended in a high place, for one. That is a good thing." Chako happily replied.

... She actually wanted to hold Emmie again though. But she couldn't take the baby away from the dad.

"... You can't be great, but can achieve greatness? That..." She was going to say it didn't sound logical, but it just took one bump of her tails on her legs to make her realize this wasn't necessarily the case, "I guess there is some truth to that. Sometimes, with a bit of luck, we can do what should have been impossible."

Chako smiled at Harper's next words, "Right... Let's make sure she grows up happily." Chako didn't know for how long miss Clarissa was planning on keeping her around as a maid, but... She'd do her best for little Emmie for as long as she was around!

@Harper

 

[Luthien]

She hadn’t missed the occasional glances and pointed fur ends on @Chako whenever she glanced towards Ash, though the elf couldn’t say she was interested enough to find out what was all of that about. Her gaze lingered on @Harper and the attire choice the tigress had picked for today, bold and unusual but one that fit the tigress well.

"Not the type of gathering I was expecting… but not a bad one either, right?"

@Ash Vargold​

Sip after sip had finished her own cocktail, and she was smart enough to seek a second one. Mixology wasn’t a skill she would’ve imagined @Ordnung having, but it seemed TerraSphere was all about surprises. There was little time to think about that when @France decided to join them, the bard’s words causing Lúthien to raise an eyebrow in curious fascination.

"Doubt that my name is ringing on any tunes… though I’ve heard Ash here is quite popular with the Falderen noble ladies~"

@Ash Vargold | @France ​

A nod of thanks was given to the bard for the glass of water he’d brought over, and the savory chickpeas made for the perfect convo snack as she decided to tease the drunk caenis some more.

 

[Ash Vargold]

"It was better before the alcohol poisoning."

Ash's head was less foggy, but he was nowhere near sober. But he could string two thoughts together now, and sit up if he needed to. @France's approach wasn't worth that effort.

"I try not to draw attention, thanks-

"Luthien what the fuck."

Ash whipped his head towards @Luthien, face reddening with embarrassment instead of drunkenness. The sudden motion made his head spin, and he buried his face in his palms with a growl.

"Why are you bringing that up when I'm too drunk to fight you."

 

[Raid Boss]

At the mentioning of something so salacious, the bard produced a quill from his breast pocket and a notepad out of thin air, as his entire upper body whipped toward @Luthien like an artist seeing the sight of an oasis in a muse-desert.

"Oh? Falderan ladies? Why that is a story waiting to be written, and lyrics to be sung. By me. Now, which one was it? The ladies."

He asked, eyes gleaming with expectation, ignoring @Ash Vargold silent protest.

 

[Ash Vargold]

"I swear to god @Luthien, if you say one more word..."

Ash's protests may have been muffled, but they certainly weren't silent.

 

[Luthien]

"Relax Ash, it’s not like I know exactly what happened that night at the entertainment tent in Camp Hope…"

@Ash Vargold | @France ​

Lúthien didn’t even try to hold back that gremliny smile in her face as the caenis’ reaction exceeded all of her expectations. A teasing sweetness coated her next words, encouraged by whatever spirits Ordnung had mixed into his cocktails.

"Alright, alright, I won’t say anything more… especially about the coat of legend that is rumored to have started it all~"

@Ash Vargold | @France ​

A silent wink was given to the bard present, before a moment of silence followed as she took a good glance towards France this time around…

"Y’know... if I didn't know better I would’ve thought you two were related."

@Ash Vargold | @France ​

 

[Raid Boss]

France let out a charmed chuckle to @Luthien's comments as he disappeared his paper and writing implement and replace his bard's tools with a glass of alcohol, which he sampled.

"Ahaha, I will have to hear about this coat of legend at some point."

With his drinking glass still in his hand, France pointed at @Ash Vargold.

"Seriously though, if you ever need to get in touch with any of these ladies, this humble bard is your gate. I know all Falderan noble ladies from A to S, everyone from T to Z aren't worth knowing. Absolute waste of precious air."

He took another swig before turning that ocean blue gaze back onto the elf.

"Funny you should mention that, my father, may Urukhan look kindly on his soul, absolutely fathered more than one bastards, though I am positive that I am the only non-bastard among my kin, and if there was ever someone else who claims otherwise, we're going to duel. For honor! And glory...?"

He raised his glass as though a general leading an army, his voice unserious.

 

[Ash Vargold]

Ash squinted at France. It wasn't as if he spent too long looking at his own face (it made him uncomfortable), but he didn't see it. Maybe it was the hair color?

"...god forbid. It'd be impossible anyway."

He took a deep breath as the conversation... refused to move away from him, or the things he was apparently adjacent to. A growl rumbled in his chest as he stood up, swayed a moment, then downed the rest of his drink in one go.

"I am too old for this."

With that, he wandered off to find somewhere quieter, which led him towards Ordnung. He found a seat with the full intent to keep his peace, but he was still riding a wave of indignation looking for a target...

"...those rumors about you being based on a corpo bigwig have to be true."

"They're exactly the sort of people who'd think they're too good for fucking backups"

...and the MIT fiasco, as it had been told in hearsay and blog comments, might as well have been a personal attack.

@Raid Boss @Luthien

 

[Raid Boss]

Like water off of a duck's back, @Ash Vargold's comments did not bother Ordnung one bit as he raised his glass to his mouth for a quiet sip before he set it down on the endtable next to him and retrieved his writing pad and a pen to reply to the wolfman in writing.

For backups in the traditional sense, yes. You'll see in a couple of months, assuming you'll be there in an assistive capacity with the rest of the MIT team.

He kept a firm gaze on the drunkard as a slight smile cracked the stone face behind the neatly written message on his pad.

Won't you, Herr Vargold?

 

[Ash Vargold]

Ash grabbed a handful of peanuts as he squinted at Ordnung's words and muttered under his breath. Had he introduced himself to this guy? He couldn't remember. Maybe Lúthien did.

"It'd be asking too much for you to know ASL..."

He chewed on Ordnung's words as he inhaled half the nuts. Connecting his thoughts was like playing a game of Operation, and he'd started this conversation losing.

"'Nontraditional' backups? What, did you engrave your data in ancient runes? Store it in a literal cloud? Do you know how many times I've heard people claim they didn't need 'traditional' backups-"

"...are you trying to recruit me?

A disbelieving laugh escaped him.

"Why, so I can watch your people tear each other apart again? Overlook a harebrained scheme to resurrect the dead? I haven't seen a single sane idea come out of your MIT."

@Raid Boss

 

[Raid Boss]

The blonde set his writing implements down to wet his unfunctioning throat with self-medicine before he jotted down another line onto the pad.

Why do you think that Artificial Intelligence from our world requires nuclear energy at massive scale to think, while a thinking human brain consumes a fraction of that requirement — at 350-650 k-calories per day, over months or years — to produce the thinking machine or the entirety of Symphony No. 9?

That is because the human mind pulls from chaos, the most natural state of thoughts — the antithesis of all man-made computers. No creativity can exist without chaos, much to my dismay. Great inventions come from the detestable and incomprehensible chaos. It is the same chaos that drives the wedge between ideologies.

Ordnung ran out of writing space, so he simply tore the page out and handed it to Ash and continued on the next page.

And so that's where the irony of my alias comes from, and why the MIT operates the way it does. We pull from chaos to bring novel ideas to creations and with all creations come unpredictability and failure. If there is a human creator, I'm sure it it would view human chaos the same way you view the MIT.

I have no intention of convincing you otherwise, but if anything can bring the UI-locks back to the real world, it would be by the hands of a tireless and obsessive peer. It is my job to keep them on the path to that goal without falling into the chaos on the wayside, and that mission can be yours too.

After he punctuated the last of his message, he ripped off the page and handed it to the wolfman before setting everything aside and leaning back into his chair and taking the final sip to empty his glass as he cast his weary eyes over the chaotic party simmering in the next room over.

@Ash Vargold

 

[Luthien]

"Mmm, I sense a few stories there… personal experiences perhaps?"

@France ​

A light chuckle escaped upon hearing Vargold’s statement, though she didn’t attempt to stop the caenis from leaving. Her job of ensuring Ash was hydrated enough had been achieved, and she could always find him later.

Instead ruby reds met ocean blues as Lúthien turned back to France, a couple more chickpeas disappearing as she listened. Far as she could tell he seemed to be another lander… though appearances could always be deceiving.

"Care to share a few of them, friend?"

@France ​

Whether it was about the noble ladies from T to Z, the antics she was certain a bard like France undoubtedly got in during his childhood, or something else entirely was up to the bard as she raised her glass of ice cold water in his direction.

 

[Raid Boss]

France arched his back, leaning his taut spine against the cushion for much needed relief as he brought the half-full glass to his lips to cover a sharp sigh.

"Mm... the one who whored out her children, or the one who minced her slaves? This bard isn't about to sour your pretty face in recounting the tales of these wretched."

France's eye was narrowed and sharpened like the edge of cold steel. There was naught but bitter disdain in that charmed bardic inflection, a true master of society.

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

"My, they sound absolutely lovely..."

@France ​

Gone was the earlier mirth in her voice, replaced instead by a thick vitriol that dripped from her statement. She had heard the tales of how things had been before the Starcalled first arrived, not that different from the innumerable records available back in their own reality from centuries ago.

Instead ruby reds met ocean blues as Lúthien turned back to France, a couple more chickpeas disappearing as she listened. Far as she could tell he seemed to be another lander… though appearances could always be deceiving.

"Hopefully they’re having the day they truly deserve."

@France ​

It almost made her want another drink… but she knew better than to push her luck and mess around with another cocktail crafted by the headmaster of MIT.

"I don’t believe I caught your name earlier, the place has been bustling quite a bit as I’m sure you’ve noticed." She was eager to move the conversation away from its current sour tones and into more pleasant territory. "And you two seem pretty close to miss Rissa… childhood friends, perhaps~?"

@France ​

 

[Raid Boss]

"Long may they live, to see Endra's scorn!"

France smiled with both his eye and his mouth as he raised his glass for a toast before taking a swig.

When Luthien asked about him, he looked at her again, cheeks burning over his light caramel skin from the master's touch.

"My name is Francisco Fraiser. But, my bard name is France, like the funny Starcalled country with the extra long bread and the people who goes oui. I tried learning that language, but it is rather difficult. The only thing I've managed to remember so far is veux-tu m'épouser?"

He smiled, if Luthien had heard French before, his pronunciation would have sounded very natural, a bard's skill perhaps.

"As for Rissa, we're not as familiar as you think. We see each other only when Ivan needs a wing-troubador to accompany him. I owe the Red Mage my life, so it's a small favor to pay. Speaking of, it appears I have also failed to catch your name, not unlike my fleeting muse. To whom do I have the pleasure of toasting the fall of Falderan nobilities with this night?"

He chuckled.

@Luthien

 

[Ash Vargold]

I did not sign up to read an essay by a Markov chain with opinions...

And yet, Ash rallied his thoughts to decipher Ordnung's words, because he'd started this debate and he wasn't planning on losing. He didn't even comment when the second paper found its way into his hands. It wasn't until he was done that he finally spoke.

"Yeah, yeah, power of human ingenuity... maybe turn some of that human ingenuity towards putting your database and your killer robot in separate cities..."

He sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"...look, I honestly don't care about 99% of what you fuckers get up to. It doesn't affect me."

Ash looked up. For a moment his gaze settled on Lúthien. Then, back to Ordnung, with a sharp, almost hateful light.

"...but you're pieces of a game designed to kill people and base cute little NPCs on the corpse."

"I'm not dumb enough to believe I can stop any of you from doing what you're designed for."

@Raid Boss

 

[Raid Boss]

You mean to say that as a UI-lock that my thoughts are not my own, but simulated? That certainly is a hypothesis worth looking into.

The blonde cupped his chin contemplatively before scribbling on another page.

The conversation between the two did not go unnoticed. Ivan who was passing by on his doordashing journey caught the tail end of Ash's conversation and decided to unceremoniously join the headmaster and the wolfman, his body still swaying on the sea in his head.

"Aaaaah? Who you calling fake, you furry-tailed bastard? How'dya really know if your reality's real anyway, aaaah?!"

He leaned in toward Ash, tilting his head, and pointing his accusatory finger as though he was a gangster threatening someone off the street.

@Ash Vargold

 

[Luthien]

"She will be the most pleased when that day finally arrives~"

@France ​

A pity their type were slicker than eels when it came to keeping Judgement Day at bay although, if the myths and legends of their pantheon were to be believed, the King of Death eventually came for all. Who knows, they might be a good pair. A thought she kept to herself, forever curious as to who the unmentioned mother of Urukhan’s beloved daughter might be.

"French is quite the troublesome language indeed. I took lessons years ago, but I can't say a lot of it stuck." A quiet chuckle escaped as a long forgotten memory resurfaced, she could still hear the vigor behind the chorused voices of their class counting in French as quarante began. "If you like baguettes and croissants then I recommend you swing by Dough Re Mi if you ever have the chance, their selection is second to none~"

@France ​

Alas her own memory of those lessons betrayed the elf when it came to figure out what the bard had actually blurted in French, though his pronunciation was just as good if not better as her teacher back in the day.

"I see, so you’re the wingman for the love-sick Doberman that’s been following Rissa around~"

@France ​

An unexpected, but entertaining, development… one of many revealed to her elven eyes tonight. Amusement twinkled in her eyes as the bard asked for her name; perhaps France's flushed cheeks betrayed the intensity of his drink while Vargold had grumbled his complaints twice before, or it was just the usual charmful politeness expected of a bard worth their salt.

"The name’s Lúthien, and the pleasure is all mine~" She took another sip of water before her glass was set upon the table, crimson eyes momentarily straying to the room where Ordnung, Ash, and now Ivan were chatting in, before she leaned against the armrest of the sofa as their own little gossiping continued. "I must admit curiosity is eating me alive now. If you don’t mind me asking, what kind of trouble did Red Mage over there save you from?"

@France ​

 

[Ash Vargold]

"I mean, what's the alternative? Souls?"

He broke eye contact quickly as Ivan approached. He leaned back, holding his free hand up in an attempt to look harmless. Ugh, his head hurt...

"Look, I've got no quarrel with you. You know Starcalled, you should know we're basically a different species..."

@Raid Boss