[Open] I wanted all the things that I haven't got

[firewalled]

Who: Rich Goranski and you!
When: Beginning of the month up until the event
Where: All around the city, including in Desmodus Mori and the refugee area
What: Rich goes about fulfilling some quests while also dealing with some monster changes. Also feat. a dash of punk.
Warnings: Some mention of broken families in the last prompt. Otherwise it should be good!



Anyways, here's Wonderwall

[Rich needed a break.

Honestly, most people probably did. Dorchacht had taken a lot out of the spirits of the people involved in that struggle, and even for the ones at home, Rich heard about what they had to deal with from anti-Bonded protestors.

And of course, there's been the whole issue of the SQUIP's continued efforts to get to everyone Rich ever happened to care about, which is making Rich more than a little worried about the new arrivals, especially Jeremy and Michael. He knows the two of them are smart, but could they hold up against literal magic? A freaking android apparently couldn't.

But worrying can only get Rich so far. And speaking of freaking androids, Connor had definitely given Rich a suggestion that's been kind of ingrained in his head as he starts looking for an outlet for pent up energy.

So after his shifts at the music store, Rich takes his guitar out from the shop, moves to an empty spot by the park, and sets up. He feels a little silly, leaving his guitar case open on the ground, but... hey, this is where most stars start out, right?

So he plays. His voice is fairly shaky at first, confidence not quite embedded into that aspect of his musical interest, but as he starts getting into the music, old classics he listened to freshman year of high school, his enthusiasm picks up, and he bounces around to the beat.

When he finishes, he looks up to whoever might have been observing, giving a sheepish grin.]

Any requests?

[His taste is unique, but he can stop playing anti-establishment 'fight the man' nonsense and pull out a classic love song if he must.]

Well, it's true that they say love bites

[The request had seemed fairly simple at first. Donate blood for some vampires to have a sustainable and consensual source of food and it's done. Rich wasn't squeamish, so donating blood seemed like an easy way to make some cash. Hell, maybe it was like the blood drives at school and he'd get a cookie after.

But when he does get into the bar, he does feel... a bit like he's bitten off more than he can chew. Particularly because he remembers now that this place probably doesn't have modern day needles and IVs. How in the hell does he donate?

Any vampires or regulars who know the drill should probably help the guy, who's now staring at his arms, wondering if tattoos were an issue.]

Carpenters: having daddy issues since Jesus Christ

[Even if Rich needed a break from the stress of last month, he couldn't completely stay out of it, so when he realized the refugees were in need of homes, he didn't blink before signing up. Whenever he has spare time, he's over in the area, helping move building materials and furniture around. He's not an expert in carpentry, but he took wood shop, so he knows how to at least cut planks of wood down to smaller planks.

When he takes a break from heavy lifting, Rich can often be found goofing off with the kids, teaching them games or telling them stories. He might appreciate a teammate to help him wrangle all the kids after a run outside... or he can always be scolded for encouraging the kids' loud laughter and screeching. But would you really ruin the fun of a dozen little kids, plus the biggest kid of them all?]

When you're half dragon but not even the cool Skyrim protagonist kind

[No matter how busy Rich attempts to keep himself, there isn't much he can do to avoid the changes, when they come. They aren't even noticeable physical ones this time... but they're still frustrating.

First comes fatigue. The rain probably makes everyone a little gloomy, but Rich wasn't expecting it to be this overwhelming. It gets to the point where he doesn't even want to crawl out of bed... and when he does, he can often be found an hour later, passed out leaning against a wall or just faceplanted on the ground. If anyone attempts to approach him then, they'll likely end up with a very cold teenager clinging to them until he's warm enough to come to and realize just how embarrassing he's acting.

Then there's a little itch, some urge in the back of his mind that gets worse when he passes art galleries and shops with framed paintings. He doesn't mean to, but he spends ages staring at the pictures, especially those of families... of happy, sweet mothers and brave, protective fathers. Happy scenes, no alcohol or hospital rooms in sight.

Perhaps you see him staring at one of these paintings, looking like he's going to swipe it off the wall at any moment. Or perhaps, if you carry any photos on your person, you may find them missing from your pockets, only to see Rich wandering past, the picture still in his hands as he stares down at it, making a beeline for home so he can add it to his collection.]

Comments

[horkbajir]

[Toby uses her wristblades to neatly remove a rectangle of bark, like a stick of gum, that she then puts into her mouth and chews contemplatively. Dry and unappealing, but the worm traces do give interesting notes of flavor.

She shrugs; it's a very human gesture, her shoulder structure being nearly the same and all.]

If you like. I'm not in charge of the wood, but I don't think anyone would particularly care. Have you developed that strength inherent to Dragons?

[firewalled]

Inherent to dragons? Dunno what you mean. I think I'm tougher than usual...

[He goes to grab at the piece of wood, expecting that he'll probably be barely able to budge it... and then of course he can lift it up without breaking a sweat. Oh. Okay. That's probably what she means.]

I, uh, guess it's mine if I can carry it.

[horkbajir]

[Toby doesn't have eyebrows and her face doesn't express much in general. This is a point where raised eyebrows might be appropriate.]

It seems to appear early. I wish I knew some physiological cause, but it appears to just be some inherent magic.

[She may be slightly put out. Despite being so lean Toby's quite strong in the way a chimpanzee would be strong, because of dense bone and muscle and a certain difference of wiring and structure. It always seems wrong when someone of more human construction is stronger.]

[firewalled]

Yeah, I don't know, man. I work out a lot, but I hadn't really since coming here, and this... definitely isn't natural strength, huh?

[Rich can tell at least that it's vastly different and... he's honestly not sure how he feels about it either. Getting suddenly more powerful, having your body change into something you don't know how to control... He feels a little sick, honestly, but he tries to ignore it, carrying the wood off to the side where he can grab it later.]

[horkbajir]

I can't say what is and isn't natural, but it's new.

You may need to watch yourself and determine if it's a particular effort, or if you could damage something without meaning to. Humans surround themselves with breakable objects, and are fragile themselves, which I was not initially particularly cognizant of.

[There's a wry note to her voice. Toby's careful in human spaces and when surrounded by them. On her first day here she accidentally cut another Mirrorbound and was surprised when the bleeding didn't just stop on its own.

With a grunt she hefts up another length of wood, hands well spaced to support it, puts it on the rack to examine, and... uses her beak to pluck a round bead of dried sap off the bark. Fresh lumber inspection, snack time... same thing.]

[firewalled]

Right... geez, I definitely don't like not knowing my own strength. Trust me, I definitely don't want to hurt anyone.

[And that's kind of the thing he's been most worried about since coming here. Honestly, as Toby gets back to work, Rich is kind of still left... staring at his hands, trying not to panic too much. He does glance up eventually from his reverie, just in time to catch a glimpse of Toby sneaking a snack while on the clock.]

...Does your kind usually like eating bark? Can't think of many animals who do.

[horkbajir]

Then it may be a good idea to learn what you are capable of. Otherwise, it will come as a surprise.

[She's aware this is troubling him, but doesn't know Rich well at all and opts to strategically be looking away and pretend not to notice for the moment; he might not want to hash it out with her, and then things would become strained.

By the time he asks, she's cut away a good, oozing rectangle, intensely pine-scented.]

It's what we were made to eat. We were designed to tend trees and live off of them, a long time ago. The Hork-Bajir were created by another species who were too apathetic to do it themselves.

[firewalled]

[Rich certainly isn't interested in talking to her about more of his baggage, not when she doesn't know him well and when it's something he should probably work out alone. If he needs help, he'll ask for it, but for now... he can figure something out. He knew how to keep his anger better in check now, so this would be the same way.]

That's crazy. So... I thought you were a species that didn't live on Earth. Are the trees here same as the ones you have back home?

[Honestly, why is he not surprised there's a whole alien species out there that doesn't give a fuck about the environment?]

[horkbajir]

They aren't, really. Homeworld trees are supposed to be much larger, up to half a mile tall. I suspect their bark is more nutritious, as well as thicker.

[She moves this chunk of log off to the side, sorting; it's got to be split into planks that can then be left to dry and season.]

But I've never seen the trees on the homeworld myself. The Yeerks invaded and overran it in my great-grandparents' time, and if they take us back there it's rarely for long. Most of the world is inhospitable to us now.

[firewalled]

Oh... right, you mentioned something about that. Those things sound awful. Where did you live before you came here?

[Rich moves in, attempting to help strip away some of the bark, though he actually has to use tools. His dragon features look impressive, but they're still a little unwieldy.]

[horkbajir]

They are.

[Toby keeps an eye on his progress; she knows she could do it better herself, and restrains her impulse to take over. Not everyone has elbow blades or lifelong practice in this kind of thing.]

I was born in a forested valley in a polity called California. I've left it before coming here, but only a few hours' travel in any direction.

[firewalled]

[He knows she probably could work faster than him, but he still wants her to feel free to chat with him, and he doesn't want to stand around useless while she does all the work. They can... take turns or something.]

No shit? See, I just thought you would have come to Earth after. No idea you were as American as I am. Ever been to Jersey? I'm from around there.

[horkbajir]

[Toby picks up a pushbroom, a little bit awkwardly, and starts shoving at some of the debris on the ground.]

No - the Yeerks are staging what they term a 'soft' invasion in a major city on the coast of California. My parents escaped from a training facility in the wilderness just outside of it.

The new Jersey or the old one? I'm afraid I've never seen either.

[Her image of the human world is not exactly complete.]

[firewalled]

That... sounds like low key indoctrination of other planets. Wow. Cool. Super fun.

[He couldn't imagine living through anything like that... though of course, had the SQUIPs not been shut down, Rich has the feeling it could have gotten that dire on Earth eventually too.]

The new one. It's cool, I mean, it's kind of garbage, so you're not missing much, but it's home.

[horkbajir]

It's not the first time. [She says it grimly, glances red-eyed at Rich. There's a lot she could say here.] They are very excited by how many of you there are, but reputedly you are enough and powerful enough that if you were aware as a people it would become... troublesome.

Is it a denser population than here? This is the only human city I've seen except as distant lights.

[firewalled]

That's usually the way they work. They have to start out small. Wait until they've got enough power before they make it obvious what they're actually doing. The SQUIPs were the same, I think. I mean, you couldn't look up any information about them on the Internet or anything like that.

[The question makes him laugh softly. He's gotten so used to living here, he's forgotten that it was vastly different from being in the big city.]

It is waaaay bigger than any city here. Like usually closer to millions in big cities, rather than hundreds.

[horkbajir]

I'm sure. It was different with my people, but that was a long time ago, and there are only a few tens of thousands of us left. So now they try infiltration and information control. It helps that humans tend to regard alien invaders as exclusively fictional and not threats to consider seriously.

I find it hard to imagine. [She shrugs.] There are sky-scrapers?

[firewalled]

That's... really creepy. I mean, if I didn't know any better, I'd say the SQUIPs might be related to this. Some rumour they started to excuse actual, legitimate aliens, since people would never believe anything like that.

[Rich honestly had never thought about the possibility of aliens... so he can't say if even he would believe it.]

Oh yeah! Not really in my part of the state, but all over the place. Especially if you took the trip into NYC.

[horkbajir]

[Toby gives a thoughtful rumble, like a sub-bass version of someone saying Hmmm.]

The Yeerks have some very advanced technology, but they are not terribly concerned with artificial intelligence, and as I understand they would not take competition lightly. Perhaps it is simply a common strategy to this sort of infiltration.

Primarily Yeerks recruit new human hosts using a social organization called the Sharing, which preys on insecurities such as loneliness and the desire to feel special. They prefer voluntary hosts, though few of those understand what they are agreeing to, if any.

[firewalled]

[Rich listens attentively. He may not understand everything that she's saying, but there are definitely bits and pieces he wants to remember for back home. He deactivated his own SQUIP, but he knows they definitely aren't all gone yet, and they might be using methods Toby is mentioning.]

I guess they are pretty similar. That sounds... super creepy, though. Are you telling me they seriously started a cult to start getting into humans? How does no one notice the cult leaders are controlled?

[horkbajir]

I don't understand cults well enough to say if it is or not. [It totally is.] That's a word for religion, isn't it?

They seem to have charitable and recreational aims. The Yeerks target the media, law enforcement, teachers, and anyone with power. If enough of those are Controllers, knowing does little good.

There is a band of humans fighting back as they can, disrupting operations. Their stated goal is to obstruct the Yeerk Empire and stall it until the Andalites, enemies of the Yeerks, arrive to fight them. I cannot trust in Andalites as saviors.

[firewalled]

It's a word for a bad religion, for sure. One where they control what information you get and manipulate what you hear so you don't start to doubt the group and leave them. The authority thing definitely makes it worse, though.

[The SQUIP certainly would have been worse if it had ever gotten into police officers... From what Jeremy said, even Mr. Reyes being SQUIPped was freaky.]

The Andalites, huh? How did these humans find out about all these alien species?

[horkbajir]

Interesting. I suppose this is a problem even without parasites of the mind. What is the relationship between a cult and a 'cult classic'?

[It's been on the flyleaves of some books.]

A dying prince - that is a military rank to Andalites - crashed his ship and they met him before he was killed. He told them about the invasion and gave them a piece of technology to assist their efforts.

[firewalled]

[Rich looks bewildered for a moment before he muffles a snort of laughter.]

Oh! Right, no, a cult classic is much less threatening. Basically that just means a book or movie has a big following of fans, even if critics might have panned it. There's nothing about religion there.

[He's pretty sure no one is starting a religion from Steven King's works, anyways.]

That sounds... pretty insane. I can't imagine how freaked out I'd be. Was the tech like, some Yeerk tracker or something?