theairlock | the beginning of the end

Entry tags:

!endgame,
!round 5

the beginning of the end

[After everyone has had the chance to pack up their items and get in all those last minute hugs, SISCE is waiting for them by the information desk in her hardlight hologram SIS form. She seems distracted while she picks up a few small things from her desk: a letter, a slightly terrifying stuffed animal and a few other odds and ends. She turns to look at them as her Champions approach, her brows furrowed in concern.]

Hello, everyone. I need to talk to you all about something. Will you come with me to the bathrooms?

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Wilhelmina! Look, it’s a lake!

[Yl’lb Ein has acquired a cart to put his big heavy robot child on! And yep, there’s a lake there.]

It is very nice! There are birds.

Oh, yes, that’s fun! I’ve been thinking of getting a new house on this planet - it would give us a lot more space for testing. What do you think?

You should not be doing most of the things you do in our current home. It is made of dangerously flammable materials.

[Yl’lb shrugs.] It’s fine. I’ll see if I can bring you along on the tour. People get nervous when you bring large, mysterious electronic devices places, you know.

I would like to see it.

They were really... a happy family.

I wonder... if that's the house we stayed in. The one he's talking about.

[SHE LIKES BIRDS]

She truly is like a child.

She started to think about the world around her like a person-- what she liked, what she wanted to do...

It's really... nice.

...I'm almost scared to keep watching.

[Because that personhood is going to get trampled on once InterGal7 gets their claws into the Wilhelmina of the past, and it's really...uncomfortable to know it's coming.]

...if... if everything was recorded then...

But... Yl'lb was the one recording these. Surely it wouldn't...

[...now she sure has a fear too.]

I mean, we won't know until...it happens, right?

...I will continue watching, if the two of you are uncertain.

[There's a lot more videos in that vein. It seems Yl'lb has backed off the lab environment entirely, but Wilhelmina is online whenever he's home with her. He even totes her about from room to room so they can talk, even though she seems pretty heavy.

After a while, he shows her plans for the device you're watching this on.

Eventually - oh, hey! That's the Science Mind set! Yl’lb is there, along with a white, weird-looking alien in a nice dress. Yl’lb seems quite friendly with her, resting a hand familiarly on her shoulder.]

Nina, this is Wilhelmina. Wilhelmina, Nina.

It is nice to meet you, Nina.

...same, of course. [Nina smiles - at least, that might be a smile? Her face is weird.]

Nina, I was hoping Wilhelmina could start helping out with the show? She can run the sound board, maybe do some other cues.

Of course! That sounds like so much fun! [She blinks her big teal eyes at the both of them.] I’ve got lots to do, but let me know how it goes!

Thanks! [He waves as she walks off, then turns to the camera.] See, that went well! Now, let’s figure out how to get you hooked up in here.

That's... Nina?

[A New Alien Has Appeared.]

...Wait - wait, that's...I swear I know that name, I...

[She's pretty certain Yl'lb mentioned a Nina...he had to of...but when was it, shit, her memory's all back but it's understandably still a mess-]

[Yl'lb runs through an explanation of how light works. At appropriate moments, Wilhelmina adds sound effects.

When it's over, he turns to her.]

Okay, did that all make sense?

The explanation was clear and accurate, yes.

Even if you weren't an A.I. with an internet connection?

I believe the target audience will understand.

Alright, good, good. [He nods and shuts off his demonstration, and then walks around the table to be closer to her, looking up at the camera.] Mina, do you realize you're a year old today?

I was activated a year ago today. In several hours.

Was it? Hm. Well, anyway - it's your birthday! Do you want to do something? I feel like I should have something planned, but I'm honestly not sure what would be best.

Hm. I see that a cake and a party is traditional.

Yes, that's what I mean. [Yl’lb shrugs, looking a little sheepish.] You wouldn't get much out of a cake. We can have a party, but Nina's busy with something, so it would just be you and me.

You're right. I cannot eat cake. [There's a slight pause, only about as long as an AI needs to think.] But you can eat cake. So you can get a cake, and you can eat it at the party.

That doesn't sound very fair for you. Do you want to watch a movie?

Can we watch Terminator 108?

[Yl'lb snorts.] Sure, we can watch that. And I'll show you my plans for your new body. I wish I could've had it done for today, but that's really a very unrealistic timetable...

[He reaches up to unhook her from the studio plugin.]

H-He was...making her a body!

Do... you think it's here with his things?

Maybe? We'd need to look, but...we really don't have time to even do that...

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daughterofthemark - 2018-04-05 01:53 (UTC) - Expand

A birthday gift!

...Mina...

[Okay... okay this is still okay...

.........]

[It looks like they're prepping for another show recording when several large lizard-like creatures walk in. One of them strides quickly towards Yl'lb.]

Hey! Pack it in, this show's been canceled.

What - canceled? I haven't heard anything like that!

You're hearing about it now. Shut it down, we're not wasting any more money on filming here.

Wasting - ? [Yl'lb bristles indignantly at the security lizard's back as they walk away, but he doesn't go after them.] Fine, stop the tapes. I'm calling Nina.

[He circles away, phone to his ear. Meanwhile, the security lizard and his fellows go about shutting down the cameras and collecting the props he'd had set up for the show. After a few seconds, one of them reaches up towards the camera.]

Please do not disconnect me.

[Across the room, Yl'lb looks up and, upon seeing what's happening, hurries back over.] Hey - hey, what are you doing?

All of this is studio property. We're repossessing it.

[He draws himself up, glaring.] ...how dare you? She is not studio property. [He tries to shove forward towards the camera, but he is a much smaller alien than the two security personnel who move forward to block his path.] Take the rest of it, but you can't just come in here and take Wilhelmina, she's not a prop!

It was created using studio resources, that makes it studio property. Do we have to escort you from the building?

Fuck you. There's no way Nina signed off on this. Do not touch me. [He hisses as they reach for him.] Wilhelmina, listen, it's going to be okay! I'll deal with this, I'll see you -

[The feed cuts.]

No!

[Oh God

Oh no

Oh noooooooo]

[It's fine it's okay this is fine it's all the past and memory is the key.

Hope SISCE doesn't mind Church holding her hand. Kind of tightly.]

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airlockedmods - 2018-04-05 02:00 (UTC) - Expand

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daughterofthemark - 2018-04-05 02:03 (UTC) - Expand

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cyan_maid - 2018-04-05 02:10 (UTC) - Expand

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airlockedmods - 2018-04-05 02:34 (UTC) - Expand

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cyan_maid - 2018-04-05 02:36 (UTC) - Expand

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induality - 2018-04-05 01:51 (UTC) - Expand

[Hi you're getting a hug.]

You do...? Well... I mean, he might have mentioned her. You guys spent more time with him than we did.

Do you remember anything?

Just give me a second to try and...clear my head. Maybe it was in passing? N...No, maybe not...

[It takes a minute before a spark appears in Jane's eyes - she remembers.]

Nina was the one who took Wilhelmina away from him - they worked together on his show, she's...the Executive Producer of Airlocked!

N-no...

[Oh. Oh god.]

That-- bitch. Why? What... what did they gain from taking even her...?