Here is a post to reach any of the NPCs active within ALASTAIR. Please specify which NPC you are looking to reach in the header of your first comment.
As a note, NPCs will not always be available to reach. They are often busy on their own missions or with other mechanics within ALASTAIR, so please check to be sure the post is currently open before beginning a thread. ICly, a message sent to an unavailable NPC will bounce back to the character that had sent it as an unanswered echo of their original message.
The NPCs should be contacted for plot-relevant purposes and direction only. Think of them more as plot devices than characters.
I doubt that they had her already, but there was a woman in charge of the saloon. I wouldn't say that she was close to them, but they might have her now. She disappeared after their ambush on us.
Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Be thorough. If you can find and eliminate the Mother, it'll be easier to take on the rest of the group.
[ In many respects, individual Taraxa are a lot like individual humans--kinda dumb, kinda erratic. The Taraxa's strength lies in their capacity to function as a completely seamless unit. ]
I'll see what we can manage. [The file is a good place to start.]
I have a few more questions. [He doesn't wait for Lloyd to tell him to ask them before he just ... rushes on ahead with them.]
How would they have ended up there if it wasn't for ALASTAIR? Isn't it a bit suspicious that they have exactly the opposite mission? Does ALASTAIR have any enemies that want to mess up the Timeline? And uh, back to the Taraxa—how do we get them out of their hosts so that the hosts don't die?
This body is synthetic. It was made for me by Crowley and Cherenkov as a gift. [ A pause. The corners of his mouth curl up as he remembers. ] They really pushed for a feline body, but I held out. Opposable thumbs are very practical, wouldn't you say?
[ Okay, more seriously: ]
I don't know how much you read about my species' history. Most of it is ugly, and I won't even try to deny that. You'll be hard-pressed to find Taraxa nowadays who Walk on borrowed time, though. They either build or clone bodies. ALASTAIR employed groups of us, usually for infiltration or espionage, because we're naturally good mimics. Sorcerers would make bodies out of magitek for us to inhabit.
[ He stills. The next bit is ugly. ]
You're right about the nose and ear: on a living host, those are the points of entry. Do you think most people would survive that?
I'm not the boss of you, chief. I can't tell you which way to go. I know Audentes has some good souls in it; it's what makes you guys work.
[ His mouth tightens a bit. He thinks. ]
If you could, somehow, capture some of these guys—or if you could figure out a way to get the Taraxa out without damaging the body any further...then you could bring them back to Oska, and we'll see what we can do.
[ He opens his palms, implying it's the best he can offer. The more merciful thing to do would be to kill them. Taraxa invasion is like a crappy lobotomy; what quality of life is there after that? But Lloyd knows Audentes by now: if anything fuels them, it's hope. And it's been, what, hundreds of years since the last time they dealt with hosts? It's worth a shot. ]
But I'll tell you this: they'll kill themselves before they'll let themselves get caught. Whatever option you choose, it's at your own risk.
[A grim thought occurs to him. It isn't an easy one, and he knows not everyone will like it. But it seems like something that's important to consider.]
If we take out the Mother, will they be less likely to do that to themselves? Can we get anything from you guys to keep them knocked out? [Someone on the team might have something, but ALASTAIR might be able to help with the end result of capturing and transit.]
No, because it's not related to being Taraxa. You should still take out the mother because they won't be able to sync without her.
As for what you can get from us: I can pretty much guarantee that you have everything you need on-hand. Is there some kind of pharmacy in this town? An apothecary, any kind of general store?
Skip the pills and go straight for the chloroform.
[ Money??? Doesn't your team have literal ninjas? ]
Just don't try to knock them out the hard way. Any blow that'll concuss a human is likely to kill a Taraxa and damage the softened tissue. Aside from that, I don't know. Ropes? Magic? C'mon chief, your team's got skill. Put it to use.
[Back up a sec. Why does that sound familiar? Keith goes to check over the file, bringing it up with his magitek. Ah, yeah. That. He had overlooked that because it hadn't seemed ... important.
You asked if ALASTAIR has enemies. Zymandis fits the bill. Where you there on Recollection Day? Did someone fill you in on how the multiverse was formed, and why ALASTAIR does what it does?
I know about the Timeline stuff, but ... I didn't exactly make it easy to learn about all that other stuff. [AKA he was an outright jerk to Loki about it.]
[ Lloyd sends him a copy of the Recollection Day video shown in the above log; he'll wait the few minutes until it's over before continuing. ]
ALASTAIR seeks to stabilize and preserve the multiverse, and shield as many lives as we can, long-term. Zymandis wants the opposite of that. They don't care how many bodies pile up.
[ Keith can get the picture. ]
I can't give you all the gory details now, because you don't have much time. Zymandis is bad news for you, and bad news for the planet. Take out those "Redeemers". Stop them before they stop you—whatever they're doing on Q-65, they're up to no good.
[It's apparent that he wants to demand the answer to why, why someone would want to do this—but he knows the Galra. Not so long ago, he had been a Galra, albeit a double agent working to bring down everything they stood for. He knows that sometimes, people are just messed up.
(Neither version of Keith has considered that Zarkon might have his own reasons for being a jerk.)]
We'll save the planet. [He's still worried about the Qorral, but this seems like a bigger issue to tackle.]
Uh, thanks for this. [A beat, another beat—] If you ever decide you can give up thumbs, you should try being a cat. Like, oh, I dunno—a lion or something. I bet that'd be pretty cool.
[Has he been holding that back since the mention of a cat body?
I bet it would. I'll tell Crow and Cher you said that, chief. [ There's a pause, more thoughtful. ] I know you guys got this. Audentes hasn't failed yet. Not bad, for a bunch of greenhorns.
Keep each other safe, all right? Go in pairs. Once you guys wrap up, I promise there'll be more answers.
[ And maybe even before, with the way things are going. ]
We got the message about the pairs. As for the answers, if I can wait, I'm pretty sure a whole lot of other people can. [Hint: he wishes he could demand more, but it's obviously not the time for that.]
Right. Talk to you ... later. [This awkward bit is because Keith is awkward. He holds out for a moment longer before cutting the feed.]
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futurologists) wrote2016-02-23 06:53 pm
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I doubt that they had her already, but there was a woman in charge of the saloon. I wouldn't say that she was close to them, but they might have her now. She disappeared after their ambush on us.
no subject
[ In many respects, individual Taraxa are a lot like individual humans--kinda dumb, kinda erratic. The Taraxa's strength lies in their capacity to function as a completely seamless unit. ]
no subject
I have a few more questions. [He doesn't wait for Lloyd to tell him to ask them before he just ... rushes on ahead with them.]
How would they have ended up there if it wasn't for ALASTAIR? Isn't it a bit suspicious that they have exactly the opposite mission? Does ALASTAIR have any enemies that want to mess up the Timeline? And uh, back to the Taraxa—how do we get them out of their hosts so that the hosts don't die?
no subject
What did the file tell you on how Taraxa hosts are made?
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They crawl in through the nose or ear, right? Hey, how did you get that body? Did you take it against its will?
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[ Okay, more seriously: ]
I don't know how much you read about my species' history. Most of it is ugly, and I won't even try to deny that. You'll be hard-pressed to find Taraxa nowadays who Walk on borrowed time, though. They either build or clone bodies. ALASTAIR employed groups of us, usually for infiltration or espionage, because we're naturally good mimics. Sorcerers would make bodies out of magitek for us to inhabit.
[ He stills. The next bit is ugly. ]
You're right about the nose and ear: on a living host, those are the points of entry. Do you think most people would survive that?
no subject
If you're asking, then I already know the answer. [Clearly, he had just been in denial of it. His "realist" perspective hadn't helped him there.]
Do you think we should just give up on trying?
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[ His mouth tightens a bit. He thinks. ]
If you could, somehow, capture some of these guys—or if you could figure out a way to get the Taraxa out without damaging the body any further...then you could bring them back to Oska, and we'll see what we can do.
[ He opens his palms, implying it's the best he can offer. The more merciful thing to do would be to kill them. Taraxa invasion is like a crappy lobotomy; what quality of life is there after that? But Lloyd knows Audentes by now: if anything fuels them, it's hope. And it's been, what, hundreds of years since the last time they dealt with hosts? It's worth a shot. ]
But I'll tell you this: they'll kill themselves before they'll let themselves get caught. Whatever option you choose, it's at your own risk.
no subject
If we take out the Mother, will they be less likely to do that to themselves? Can we get anything from you guys to keep them knocked out? [Someone on the team might have something, but ALASTAIR might be able to help with the end result of capturing and transit.]
no subject
As for what you can get from us: I can pretty much guarantee that you have everything you need on-hand. Is there some kind of pharmacy in this town? An apothecary, any kind of general store?
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[ Money??? Doesn't your team have literal ninjas? ]
Just don't try to knock them out the hard way. Any blow that'll concuss a human is likely to kill a Taraxa and damage the softened tissue. Aside from that, I don't know. Ropes? Magic? C'mon chief, your team's got skill. Put it to use.
no subject
We'll handle it.
What about my other questions?
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The Taraxa you're encountering are very probably Zymandis.
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Now it seems important.]
And who are they, exactly?
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He looks a bit guilty after a moment.]
I know about the Timeline stuff, but ... I didn't exactly make it easy to learn about all that other stuff. [AKA he was an outright jerk to Loki about it.]
no subject
ALASTAIR seeks to stabilize and preserve the multiverse, and shield as many lives as we can, long-term. Zymandis wants the opposite of that. They don't care how many bodies pile up.
[ Keith can get the picture. ]
I can't give you all the gory details now, because you don't have much time. Zymandis is bad news for you, and bad news for the planet. Take out those "Redeemers". Stop them before they stop you—whatever they're doing on Q-65, they're up to no good.
no subject
(Neither version of Keith has considered that Zarkon might have his own reasons for being a jerk.)]
We'll save the planet. [He's still worried about the Qorral, but this seems like a bigger issue to tackle.]
Uh, thanks for this. [A beat, another beat—] If you ever decide you can give up thumbs, you should try being a cat. Like, oh, I dunno—a lion or something. I bet that'd be pretty cool.
[Has he been holding that back since the mention of a cat body?
... Yes.]
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I bet it would. I'll tell Crow and Cher you said that, chief. [ There's a pause, more thoughtful. ] I know you guys got this. Audentes hasn't failed yet. Not bad, for a bunch of greenhorns.
Keep each other safe, all right? Go in pairs. Once you guys wrap up, I promise there'll be more answers.
[ And maybe even before, with the way things are going. ]
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Right. Talk to you ... later. [This awkward bit is because Keith is awkward. He holds out for a moment longer before cutting the feed.]
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