THE SQUAD DOES AN INTRO: GROUP MEET UP - [modplot] [event] [free-for-all]

[wildermods]

THE SQUAD DOES AN INTRO: GROUP MEET UP
OOC POST
The Green's binding spell finally works out its kinks and the entire group is teleported into the same area in the center of the city, near the statues of the Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, and Scarecrow.

Everyone in the group feels a tingling sensation as the magic sets in place and binds them. Anyone that tries to leave will now find themselves being teleported back if they wander too far. The group will have to try to stay together when it moves now.

They have a little bit of time to figure things out.

---

OOC INFO
✦ Post in actionspam format. Plots and mod-run events in the game are meant to be in actionspam format to keep a brisk pace.

✦ Free-for-all Post. This event will be in "free-for-all" format, meaning that threadhopping is encouraged and that threading should be treated in the same conversational way as network posts.

✦ By now, the language magic should be fully in place. By now, everyone should have magically learned Sylvaen so that everyone can speak it fluently and understand each other.

Comments

[awfulcer]

[Dixon jerks away from the gesture rather than the tendril, which he doesn’t even see. He steadies himself against Revan and the Tin-Man, swaying until he finds his balance again.] Why’s he giving his side first? I was walking up like normal to introduce myself to him and he gets in my face about how I’m killing people and pulls a blade on me. That’s how this started.

[Granted, Dixon’s slurring the last half of that sentiment really hard, almost to the point of unintelligibility, so if everyone did the wise thing and ignored him it’d be pretty justified.]

[shipoftheseus]

[The alloy bounces off...nothing, as far as Phos can tell. The whole mass of it twists and stretches for a moment with their confusion before retracting back into the shape of an arm. Phos eyes it for a moment, disconcerted by whatever that was and the situation in general.

This is frustrating beyond belief. Why doesn't anyone get it?]

He was trying to break them! [They gesture at the statues emphatically. Not those in particular, but. Y'know. Phos assumes these people can make sense of it.] There's already something wrong with them! How cruel do you have to be to try damaging them at this point?

[therevanchist]

[She shushes Dixon the way she would any belligerent drunk, most of her attention on Phos.

And then it clicks, not from any whispers through the Force--and where the hell is the Force when she needs it, anyway?--but merely because she's used to being surrounded by non-humans.]

Your species is inorganic. [That part's not really a question. The sparkling hair, the perfect skin, the quasi-metallic arms. Revan will kick herself for not getting it sooner once this calms down.] Statues like this are people on your world?

[She tries to phrase it as neutrally as possible, and hell, for all she knows, Phos is right.]

[balladin]

Are you kidding me?

[ Robbie can only watch as the gold tentacle stretches around him. Something happens so it doesn’t reach its intended target, but he can’t make out whether it’s because the man dodged or not.

He’s relieved either way. Phos' arms are morpheous, but they look hard. He ignores the woman's questions, or rather doesn't wait for a response. She's not pissed enough. ]

This is about the statues?! Who cares? Half of them are smashed anyway. Do you want him to look like them?

[shipoftheseus]

[Revan's logic is good, if disorienting. Those sure are some implications, that the norm isn't inorganic, that these aren't people. Phos gapes for a moment, but the other guy interrupts before they can gather themself enough for some kind of response and, oh lord. That sure was not the way to calm them down.

Bristling -- literally, in the case of their arms, which momentarily shift with their agitation -- Phos scowls and jabs a finger towards Dixon.]

His face looks damaged. Does that mean it's okay for me to break yours, too? I mean who cares? Some of you are already broken.

[The sarcasm is not even remotely veiled, wow.]

[awfulcer]

[Wow, Phos, way to point out the fact that his face is fucked up. Ouch. Rude. It’s mostly by reflex that calling attention to his wounds makes his hand shoot up as if to make sure they’re still there, which he regrets immediately because alcohol numbs them a little bit sure as hell doesn’t make them not gaping burns.

And he’s not following the point of this argument at all. Revan and Phos might as well be speaking Greek, and that’s why Dixon infers as little and as wrong as he does from Phos’ analogy.]

They told me it wouldn’t look that bad when it healed.

[balladin]

No, it’s not okay!

[ That is some of the most messed up logic that he’s heard in awhile. Robbie suspects it’s hyperbole, but it’s hard to tell. The shiny kid has attacked twice. He stops shouting, but it’s not much of an improvement. ]

My hand's broken. That doesn’t mean you can break the other one. We’re people. [ He jerks his head at the statues. ] They’re things.

Property damage is stupid, too, don’t get me wrong. [ He shoots Dixon a look. ] But it’s not enough for corporal punishment. Christ.

[ And then quietly, to Dixon. ] I’ve seen a lot worse. It’ll heal up.

[shipoftheseus]

[Phos groans over Dixon's moment of self-pity, hands moving to cover their face in frustration.]

Ugh, I don't care about your face!

[You're missing their point here, dude. Pulling their hands away again, Phos levels a frown at Robbie.]

I'm people. [Fuck. Wait.] A person. Are you gonna shatter me because some of them are already damaged?

[They square their shoulders as they say it, already prepared for an answer they won't like. Gosh, it's not like they've spent their whole life in fear of otherworldly beings coming to break them and steal them away.]

[balladin]

[ A look of complete bewilderment overtakes his face. ]

I know you’re people.

[ His tone is so confused as to sound childlike. ]

We’re talking. [ As if speech is the only indicator of personhood. ] You’re obviously a person. I’m not going to let anybody hurt you either. Nobody’s shattering anybody, okay? That’s the whole point.

[ What did he do to get this nonsensical shared delusion/afterlife? ]

[therevanchist]

Enough.

[Revan's firm, voice loud enough to be authoritative without yelling, and she manages to look imposing even with the drunken aggressive mess that is Dixon hanging off one arm. She had this under control before the stranger threw fuel on the fire, and she addresses him directly, keeping the annoyance out of her voice and bearing in favor of that stereotypical Jedi calm.]

Phosphophyllite is from an inorganic species--the statues look like people in comas to her. [It's a guess, but the way Phos is acting makes Revan feel like she's at least in the ballpark.] She's acting in defense of the helpless.

[Phos might be wrong--which Revan isn't willing to bet on after how weird this day has been--but that doesn't make their intentions bad. She turns to Phos, and softens slightly. Poor kid thinks they're the only one defending a city full of the powerless.]

Phosphophyllite, in the places most humans are from, statues aren't people. They're not even alive. It didn't occur to us that they might be. Is there a way we'd be able to tell?

[awfulcer]

[Finally things click for Dixon. It doesn't do anything to make him less angry and bitchy, because it's just one more dollop of weirdness on the bananas sundae that's apparently the world now, and Dixon's reached his limit for how many new revelations he can have about the state of the universe.

Besides, now he feels like everyone's a step ahead, and like people are going to look at him like he's done something wrong when as far as he knew all he was doing was messing around with some inanimate decorations, and that's frustrating too. He feels hoodwinked by some kind of cosmic force.

So, as if to signal that he's totally back to following this conversation, he decides to interject with what he's certain is an on-point and relevant question.]

If they were people why didn't they say anything?

[Nailed it.]

[shipoftheseus]

[Phos doesn't correct the pronoun simply because...well. It's just another word that doesn't really mean anything to them. Plenty of those going around here. Hell, there were plenty of those going around back home that no one ever questioned. Why is Sensei a "he", or even a "sensei"? It's not something they really have the time to think on right now, nor do they really want to, on top of everything else they're questioning about home these days.]

Huh? I mean...I don't really know. I'm not a doctor. I don't know what to look for.

[It'd be...the inclusions, right? Can those -- the kind that make them all sentient and alive -- even be seen? Does stone like these figures even have those? They really don't know. Rutile would have, but up until recently Phos was too clumsy to be allowed to help Rutile much, and being in the infirmary all the time doesn't help much when you're frequently unconscious during the experience.

Revan's explanation is helpful, but definitely not pleasant. Phos grimaces at the thought, and then frowns at what sounds like a pretty stupid question from the asshole with the broken face.]

Why would anyone make fake people? That's...kind of creepy.

[Super creepy.]

[wherenoonegoes]

Any number of reasons. We don't really think of statues as fake people. It's art. Decoration.

[shipoftheseus]

[That...definitely rubs them the wrong way even more, somehow.]

Eh? So you wouldn't find it creepy at all to decorate with fake people if they were made of... [They trail off awkwardly for a moment, unsure of what the word would be, before gesturing vaguely at the group of people gathered in general.] ...Organic matter?

[That's gross. Humans are so gross, wow.]

[suckitblue]

Look, wax museums are creepy, but that doesn't mean you hit people.

[ Helping! ]

[balladin]

[ Robbie nods at this remark. ]

Wax is organic, and the wax figures hit the uncanny valley pretty hard - but that's a euphemism. If somebody punched a wax man, it's dumb, but nobody's going to attack over it.

They wouldn't be alive. [ He shrugs. ] That's the huge difference. That, aaaaand I bet I'm not the only one who's used to carbon-based people. Sorry.

[googledox]

[Brainiac had walked away to take some scans of the area. He returns to what's very obviously an altercation that some of the group seems to be trying to break up.]

[When he speaks, he doesn't necessarily yell but there's a firmness to his voice that draws attention. It makes him sound like a schoolteacher just inches away from giving the whole class detention.]

What a relief it is to see everyone taking our pressing circumstances seriously and giving mutual cooperation the effort it deserves. It's not like our lives are being treated like the idle playthings of some higher power or anything.

[You could cut through the sarcasm with a knife.]

[His eyes bugging out just slightly he turns to each of the offended parties.]

[Phos first.]

You. Despite this man's face being eminently hittable, violence is the last thing we need right now when we're facing such perilous circumstances. For all we know, we could be facing external threats at any moment.

[He turns to Dixon.]

As for you, cease your pointless destructiveness. We have no idea who might be offended by destruction of the environment or what's responsible for the creation of these statues.

In my universe there was a species capable of causing petrification of living beings through mere line of sight, a process which rendered them into detailed statues much like these. The process was reversible - provided some feckless imbecile didn't smash them for his own amusement.

We have no information about our environment or about what forces are in play, and that means we should manipulate the environment as little as possible. Making assumptions is ignorant at best, deadly at worst.

Now are you all quite finished with this pointless barbarism? Or should we assign leadership based on feats of physical strength, start fashioning spears, and determining who will be a suitable sacrifice to the sun god?

[awfulcer]

[Dixon's starting to put together a list in his head of people he wants to punch in the face. The first is Phos, for obvious reasons, but it's turned into a horserace between him and Brainiac. Every five-dollar word dripping from Brainy's lips is like getting an icepick to Dixon's drunk brain. It's all way too unnecessarily complicated for him to keep up with in this state.

So basically, he gets the tail end of it.

He makes a jabbing, pointing gesture at Phos with the hand he's using to stay up on the Tin-Man and nearly falls over for his trouble.]

I vote him for the sun god.

[invisibleheir]

Perhaps it would be easier to get everyone to work together if you were to couch your words in better terms.

[ This guy is snotty as heck and Arturia already doesn't like him all that much. He reminds her (uncomfortably) of Gilgamesh or perhaps that priest that Rin had hated so much with his disdainful attitude. Besides, a king should respect their people--even if they're not really a king in this case. She watches Dixon topple over and sighs. ]

If you wish to engender co-operation, this sort of high-handedness is likely to drive people away from you, even if you happen to be correct on some points.

[ Hey, she wasn't good at being king for no reason. ]

Fashioning weapons of some type would likely be useful, though. Not all of us are armed and we don't know if anything dangerous is out there. We should be prepared for that, so thank you for reminding us to be prepared.

[ Said without a hint of sarcasm, too. ]

[shipoftheseus]

[Phos should probably be a bit sulky over getting lectured. Or over Dixon continuing to be an ass. But instead they're just staring at Brainy head tilting curiously as they recognize the poncho and the voice.]

Brainy? [He had all kinds of stuff covering his head before. Now he doesn't, and he's very green.] Ah...I guess I thought you were a...one of them.

[They gesture vaguely at the rest of the group, content for the time being to lump all those similar-seeming organic people together without any better words for them.]

[invisibleheir]

Living statues are a possibility.

[ Arturia finally speaks up after letting the argument run longer then she'd like. She's not in charge here, though, so there's no point in acting like she is. ]

In our time, though, statues were a representation of a person, a way to remember them or to honor them.

[ Arturia gives a shake of her head. ]

I understand your point. I imagine any of us would be equally disturbed in that situation.

[wherenoonegoes]

We do carve things out of wood, and whalebone. [And, formerly, dragonbone, even if Hiccup didn't like thinking about that.] But nothing that was an actual person beforehand. That would be insane.

[the_hit_list]

[ Tim had been dealing with handcuffs and dragons when the townhall blew up. Now, he’s lingering on the edge of the conversation with a curious expression on his face, intellectual interest and nausea.

He’s holding one of the stone dolls, examining it like a baby so as to not offend by pawing at it. Tim keeps looking from the doll, to Phos, and the hyper-realistic statues.

And then, quietly. ]

There’s at least one metahuman who can make people into statues, Phosphophyllite. It was… I don’t know what I think about it. It was a punishment for murder.

[ He holds up the doll. ]

But they weren’t turned into stone.

[shipoftheseus]

[Phos turns to this new stranger curiously, and their eyebrows knot together just slightly as they stare.]

...I think whatever you're saying sounds like a big deal, but I honestly only understood like half of it.

[Couple of key words just flew right over their head there, whoops.]

[the_hit_list]

I’m saying you might be right to worry. We can’t discount the statues being individuals, whether human, your kind, or some other being.

[ Specifically alien or android, but he’s not sure if those will translate, given how his previous remarks confused his audience. ]

They look like stone statues, but that’s not proof.

[ He hums to himself as this train of thought gains steam. ]

In fact, no one’s mentioned native inhabitants. The city could be deserted, but freezing the population could be another step of the kidnapping process. If this is the Emerald City, then this could be a citizen of China Country.

[ It sounds ludicrous to him, and yet he can’t deny it’s a possibility. He frowns at the doll. ]

It could also be a life-sized sculpture. I don’t want to overthink this.