Mai-Ly (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
formidable) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
sweethymns2018-05-31 10:48 pm
formidable) wrote in sweethymns2018-05-31 10:48 pm
ʜᴜᴍᴀɴ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ᴀʟʟ
Androids, psychics, magic, investigations, and finding out how to human. ➢ Cool Mood Music No. 1 ➤ Cool Mood Music No. 2 |
I'ᴍ ᴄɪʀᴄʟɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇsᴇ ᴠᴜʟᴛᴜʀᴇs;
For whatever reason it might be, Connor does not qualify.
He’s passed from one world into another, and though the streets look similar enough, there is something oddly retro about the buildings, the homes, all that he can see out of the corner of his eye as he stumbles into a remote alleyway somewhere. The transition was sudden, unexpectedly, tearing at his body — his shirt, his uniform, stained with blue blood. He can’t see the wound there, and the pain is not something he experiences fully, but he’s already lost too much; his biocomponents becoming sluggish and unresponsive, a warning flashing in his mind’s eye that only he can see — white-on-red numbers, a timer, until critical internal failure.
It’s hard to know what happened, hard to tamp down something rising within his chest that feels like panic wrought from the unknown. A hand presses against the alleyway wall, leaving streaks of blue where his fingertips have brushed by. He had learned that putting pressure against his new wound, deep across his chest, did nothing to help.
Maybe somewhere he can find help, if his body didn't feel so sluggish from the blood loss.]
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Yᴏᴜ'ʀᴇ ᴡᴀʟᴋɪɴɢ ᴍᴇᴀᴅᴏᴡs ɪɴ ᴍʏ ᴍɪɴᴅ;
It is one that he’ll have to undertake sooner rather than later, for NYC has been hounded by someone utilizing the power of a summoned entity, something powerful and difficult for him to handle on his own. He’s done his research, been cautious in his preparation (runes all along the ground, magic buzzing just under the surface and ready to burst forth) — and Stephen stands within the foyer of the great Sanctum Sanctorum, atop the stairs. Below, in front of the entrance, lies his work. A circle for summoning this spirit, something noble and loyal and more importantly, useful.
Hopefully.
Wong will probably remark about a mess where a mess shouldn’t be, but that’s fine, for he’s not here to see it yet.]
All right. Let’s see just what we can wake up from the depths of the unknown...
[Always a good idea, right? Maybe not, but Stephen has confidence in his abilities. He knows that he can handle whatever comes to greet him, and if he’s lucky, he won’t have to “handle” anything at all.
His hands glow with circular, lighted magic. They swirl and dance around, and he wills the runes on the ground to work, to pull forth with their magic a spirit that will aid him, that will be his companion until it’s no longer needed.]
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ᴀɪʀᴘʟᴀɴᴇ ᴍᴏᴅᴇ
She's already up and about, doing her laundry, washing some leftover dishes, and when she passes by the android, she gives a nod to herself, as if making sure he's safe and glad to see nothing was amiss. The psychic girl isn't sure if she should tell to get up, or if he'll do so of his own accord.
And she also wasn't certain if he felt the sensations of coolness and warmth, but it hadn't stopped her from covering him with a knitted throw blanket over his legs and torso. That was just being a good hostess.
There's a song playing faintly in the background from her phone on the counter as she preps another big meal for herself and also for Lien once she arrives to sort out this conundrum. Ai hums along with the music, feeling a bit more cheerful than usual.
It's been a while since she had company after all.]
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ʜᴇʟʟᴏ ғʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ sɪᴅᴇ
[Lien is the one who takes the lead once Ai shows her the alleyway in which they found their android. For the past 5 minutes, the psychometer has been walking back and forth in a trance and fingers tracing the surface of the building walls that create the alley. She's been rattling off all sorts of miscellaneous information as she searches for the doorway that RK800 had crashed through, but it seems like there's no dice so far.]
—Fingerprints, female, age 18, scrub brushes, cleaning solution— Traces, fingerprints, android, RK800... Unknown... Liquid... Evaporated... Blue....
[Well she's found where Connor was. Getting warmer. Ai follows Lien closely in case she shows convulsions again.]
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Oɴᴇ ʜɪᴛ ᴀɴᴅ I’ᴍ ᴛᴀᴋɪɴɢ ᴏғғ;
The week passes without issue, without event. Life moves on, on both sides.
Until one morning, the sun shining bright through thin clouds, there’s a knock on Ai’s apartment door. Once, twice. Three times.
When and if she opens it, Connor will be standing there; wearing a navy cap that just barely covers his LED, dark jeans and shoes, and... the newest tank that Lien got him a week ago.
He smiles wide, carrying two pizza boxes.]
Hello. It’s me, Connor.
[As if she wouldn’t have recognized him.]
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ᴡᴇ ɢᴏ ʀᴏᴜɴᴅ ᴀɴᴅ ʀᴏᴜɴᴅ ᴇᴀᴄʜ ᴛɪᴍᴇ
The carnival was an obvious place to visit. It was Lien (still busy on one of her cases) who suggested the outing without asking Ai whom she was going with, but the older twin had an inkling about who the younger was so eager to spend time with. The brightly and sometimes obnoxiously colored stands and signs fill Ai's vision; there were the rides from low to high-speed ones, the games with impossible-to-win prizes, and of course, the food stands. Always with the food.
Ai is tackling a giant mound of pink and blue cotton candy which was big as her head... 5 minutes ago. It's halfway done. She looks up at Connor and points at her treat.]
Pure sugar isn't the healthiest... But it's the quickest way to gain calories and the quickest one to burn.
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ᴛᴏᴜᴄʜ, ᴡʜᴇʀᴇ ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʟᴇᴀᴅ?
That's not the case today. She feels the heaviness in her body and the struggle to get out of bed. What's worse, Ai can't even muster up an appetite. That's when she knows it's dire. That morning she sent a text to Lien asking her to pick up some medicine now that her twin was back in the States and around to support her. It's difficult; even if she knew many people, there were so few she actually wanted to lean on. It felt pathetic and in a moment of weakness and some self-loathing, Ai wished she was better at making friends. The one she made recently? Well...
She definitely wants to see him, but not while she looks and feels like this.
Coughing, Ai manages to push herself out of her bed and attempts to do some chores, like laundry, dishes, and dusting. All of these are only finished halfway. Collapsing on the couch, she wonders if she'd be able to watch something relaxing and try to feel better that way (no more horror movies for a while).]
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Iɴ ᴛʜɪs ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍ I'ᴍ ᴅᴀɴᴄɪɴɢ ʀɪɢʜᴛ ʙᴇsɪᴅᴇ ʏᴏᴜ
Patience, Sumo. She’ll be here.
[Connor stands attentively, not dressed in his usual uniform. Today is a white dress shirt and dark jeans, accented with a leather belt and his usual choice in footwear. He had been looking forward to this. Just half an hour ago he had told Hank he would be leaving to take Sumo for a walk, and the man had asked what was the hurry. He didn’t receive an answer, because Connor had already left.
The weather is nice, at least. Warm, with the park perked up with green grass and the whisper of leaves overhead. It’ll be hot soon, but the last fringes of spring are still clinging to life, before tapering off into heat and the summer sun.
Idly, Connor raises a hand to straighten his collar while he waits.]
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ɪ ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ᴡᴀɴɴᴀ ᴄʟᴏsᴇ ᴍʏ ᴇʏᴇs
Can I take a set of watercolors from here? These colors are beautiful!
[The sky in Detroit is darkening although the number of people and some androids mixed in the crowd outside haven't lessened; the fireworks celebration was about to start and everyone was clamoring for a good spot to view the lights display from. Inside of the Bellini Paint store, there are just two customers, Ai Thao and RK800/Connor. After brunch with Hank, they've had their fill of the city where Ai was able to get a good look at this futuristic version of Detroit and what it had to offer. She had fun taking the bus and looking at the taxis. She pointed to the drones, surprised that those were still in use and how sleek they looked compared to drones of 2016. There were still some homeless, and she learned about the unemployment rate and how the newfound freedom of androids may keep the future of that uncertain. She would look through digital magazines and articles, dumbfounded that paper circulation had plummeted.
Taking a walk through the park on another path, different from the one they started with, Ai took note on how many androids were with their human companions, old and young. She looked at the androids who still wore their LEDS and designated uniforms, asking Connor about what their models were designed for. The psychic looked in awe at how much space the CyberLife store took up while she snacked on a hot dog while sitting in front of a water fountain where the statue felt like one of the few things untouched by time. Everything she looked at and asked Connor about, she did so with fresh curiosity and wonderment taking in the differences and letting the scenes be imprinted into her mind. The good, the bad, she took it all in and enjoyed herself thoroughly and before long they ended up at Bellini Paints.
Ai is testing out some colors given to her by the mild-mannered android clerk who gave her some paper, water, and a brush.]
These are really good. I'm glad stores like these are still around.
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ɪ ᴛᴏʟᴅ ʜᴇʀ ɪ ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ᴋɴᴏᴡ
[Ai Thao mutters to herself as she lays her hand against the forehead of the man laying on her couch. Some hair is brushed away idly from his forehead.]
Multiple pulses too...
[The knitted throw blanket is pulled halfway up his chest even though it wasn't a particularly cold day, but some part of her wanted to cover him up for the illusion of security once he wakes up. Getting up from her knees, Ai clasps her hands together, squeezing, trying to gather her bearings for this unexpected turn of events.
It was supposed to be like any other day, any other weekend, in the sense that her usual days would be peppered with visits from an android from an alternate future of Detroit, Michigan. But the atmosphere felt different around the alleyway where their doorway was. Just to be sure, Ai had discharged more energy into it to make sure it was stabilized, but nothing was out of the ordinary (so to speak) otherwise.
That was until Connor exited the door and collapsed in front of her. She had to carry him to her apartment, no easy feat with her size compared to his height and trying not to attract the notice of any onlookers. Throughout that slow trip, she felt a different sort of weight, some warmth, a different feel to the skin around him and how he actually breathed through unconsciousness. But when Ai set Connor on the couch and REALLY took a look at him, she finally noticed.
His LED was gone.
All she can do is wait to see if he woke up. To see if her suspicions were confirmed.
Something about him changed.]
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ᴏɴʟʏ ʜᴜᴍᴀɴ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ;
Such was the state of his mind as he knocked on her apartment door. She knew who to expect on this day.]
It’s me. Connor.
[-he calls through the door anyway, just in case. A hand slips into his pocket, thumbing the silver quarter there.]
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ʙᴜʏ ᴜ ᴀ ᴅʀᴀɴᴋ;
Once he’s settled, he says to Ai (loudly):]
Why do you have a fake ID, Ai?
[connor pls]
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𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐚 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐨𝐧
[Ai had brought Connor to the aquarium, she reasoned, was because she had never been to one herself.
Inside of the darkened building, the prominent glow of blue and the colorful marine life reflects and bounces off her dark hair. Her back is turned to him at first before turning around to look at the android. Her own blue eyes appear to be enhanced as a streak of light lands across her face.]
I'm so glad we came here together! I remembered reading articles about how they were making... Well, android animals and I thought you'd like to see a sizeable collection of sea life! The real thing even.
[She's enjoying herself and yet... She hadn't acknowledged that odd night they shared, when they had too much to drink, and too much to express.]
We should go touch the stingrays next!
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