[Network] username: leonskennedy | ota

[needsabreak]

[The camera angle isn't the most flattering, hinting that the tired looking young man isn't too used to camera phones.]

Hi. My name's Leon Kennedy. I'm new. I know a handful of people here are new too but some have been here before. I guess, I'm hoping to talk to a few people who are returning about the things you know about this place. Talking over this thing is fine but I'd prefer to meet in person.

Anyone who's returning who'd be alright meeting in person, I'll throw a drink on me into the deal. Your choice, beer or coffee.

Comments

[artistwithasickness]

[Her eyebrows lift a little, the humor of the whole thing starting to creep away.]

I am. That's what's outside that dome, Leon. That's what we're being protected from by being here in the first fucking place and if you think a couple in the streets is bad, wait until there's no bit of street that they're not covering.

Two people who've had run ins with demons aren't shit for statistics of when a break in the dam is likely to happen for the entire pocket universe, that's not even correlating data. You want stats on the low level creatures here? Shoot 'em, they bleed, basically. Nothing special there that a skilled person can't handle.

[needsabreak]

A break in the dam? You just said the dome wasn't likely to break and, sounds like, if it does we're fucked anyway. [He doesn't see any point in even worrying about that and he's really not sure why she's so hung up on it.]

Well, it definitely mattered to those two people. And yeah, that's what I asked - how to take down one of them. [He doesn't look placated by the answer, brow furrowing as the information he's getting doesn't seem to be lining up.]

You're sure? Nothing special about kinds of ammo or where to shoot them? [He really wants to believe there's some piece of the puzzle he's missing. ] One of those people I was talking about said it didn't seem to care when it was shot.

[artistwithasickness]

They're strong as shit and durable as shit and you better have a hellva good aim if guns are the way you're goin' and plenty of ammo to match - stay in the light, stay out of the shadows, that kind of things. [But they were still small fish in the greater whole of the argument.]

It's not likely to, at least not as it stands now but that shit is just as likely to change if you go charging around the Tower- [Which was really her point here-] and if it breaks and you're already in the 'we're fucked' category, I've got some objections to your general constitution, Leon. Which really is a shame, I was almost starting to like you.

[needsabreak]

Strong and durable. Alright, nothing I'm not used to. [He's used to most of the things he's fighting taking multiple head shots and being deadly as hell. He is hoping to pick up a shotgun soon, maybe he'd look into a rifle as well.]

Charging around the Tower? Didn't have any plans to do that. [He was curious about it, for sure, and, honestly, part of him wants to just go talk to the entity that was this city.] Yeah, I don't really give a shit what you think about me. [It's not even said with any malice, he just really doesn't care.

He'd be fighting tooth and nail but it sounded like a baseline human, even as well trained as he was, didn't have much of a chance.]

[artistwithasickness]

[Devi's head pulls a little eyebrows lifting.]

Great! Well good fuckin' day to you too. Good luck- [she says it with a wink before lifting off.]

I'll be sure to come bug you when shit hits the fan again, see how you're takin' it, big man.

[bossyboiler]

If you insist. [ She'll let him insist but she's going to pay him back anyway. Kate knows that cleaning is boring work for most others. Tedious, in fact. ]

Oh, no. Not at all. I mean I baked a lot but it was more of a hobby. I used to help mutants. You could say that I'm like a glorified social worker. I'd help them get jobs. Figure out beneficial ways to use their powers. Help them get aid if they needed it. That sort of thing.

What about you?

[needsabreak]

Really? Very impressive. It sounds like really important and rewarding work. [He looks up from the table he's wiping down to give her a smile.

He hesitates a little when she throws the question back at him. Honestly, he should've learned by now not to ask people about what they did because it inevitably meant they'd ask about him.]

Uh. I guess you could say I clean up messes. [Just a little bit vague. He's scrubbing again when he realizes what he said could be misinterpreted, so he quickly adds an addendum.] I'm not a criminal.

[bossyboiler]

It is. I'm very happy at what I did. I was good at it too.

Well then, what kind of messes do you clean up? Are you with one of those companies that goes in after a disaster and tries to rebuild?

[needsabreak]

You mean you are good at it. [His voice quiet and reassuring as he corrects her.] We won't be stuck here forever.

[He swishes his lips at her guess.] No. [He's already told one person here what he does and he can't think of any harm in people from completely different worlds knowing what he does, so he just stops beating around the bush.]

I work for the US government. I'm a special agent and deal primarily with bioterrorism.

[bossyboiler]

I am good at it. [ She shares carefully. ] There is no way of knowing how long we will be stuck here. [ Hence her use of the past tense. ] One thing is for certain, when I do leave here, I won't remember any of my time here.

Oh. You're a cop. I see.

[needsabreak]

Yeah, I know. But it's good to stay positive when it comes to things like that.

[He slows a little at what she says before continuing to scrub at one particularly stubborn spot.] Not really. [His throat feels too dry all of a sudden.] Why do you say it like that? What's wrong with cops?

[It's what he'd wanted to be, it's what he would have been if his life and the world hadn't gone sideways, and he still held an idealistic and boyishly naive idea of cops as people who helped others.]

[bossyboiler]

It's just that I'm a mutant and my species doesn't always have the best relationship with law enforcement. And when you throw in bioterrorism which a lot of people want to classify mutants as terrorists well... It's not that there's anything wrong with you. It's the system.

tw mentions of some emotionally rough zombie violence

[needsabreak]

[He sighs and stops scrubbing for a moment so he can face her while he speaks.]

There aren't mutants where I'm from.

There are... people who've been turned into monsters, biological weapons that kill indiscriminately. Innocent people. Both the dead and the living. They don't think or feel anymore. There's nothing left of the person they were. [He hates that his voice trembles ever so slightly at that last part, remembering watching Marvin succumb to the infection and being forced to kill him or be killed. Or having to shoot what once was a child after it killed and ate its own parents. He swallows thickly.]

I don't think the 'systems' are the same for us.