EVENT | ZUGZWANG | SEPTEMBER 21-28

[ironwood]

Characters: ALL!
Date: September 21-28, 2014
Location: Keeliai
Situation: Something in the city has caused the Foreigner's powers to go off the charts, affecting even those who wouldn't possess any. Things pretty much go downhill from there...
Warnings/Rating: Add warnings as needed.

The state of affairs in Keeliai has been tense since the incident at the Midnight Hotel with Evandau, and the aftereffects have put a touch of pall on the city. Kedan look at each other distrustfully, wondering who among their number might be possessed by Malicant's essence and that suspicion carries to the Foreigners as well. How can they fight for us? they seem to be asking. They can't even stop fighting amongst themselves and the Emperor. Of course, the kedan's opinion of Evandau is likewise not exactly stellar any longer, as whether through inevitability or design, his cold actions of killing those who cross him has come to light. While there's no open dissent in the ranks (and likely, it seems, more due to fear of repercussion than loyalty) there are certainly looks and whispers.

The turtle hatchlings have also picked up on it, and they've become quieter than normal. Especially those who are suffering under shedding the remainders of Malicant's taint if they were injured by the poisoned weapons, they'll seem hesitant to bother their parents for minor things, or if possible will ask a parent who isn't afflicted first.

It feels like the calm before a storm.

---

LINKS
Powers Going Haywire (Sept 21-25) | Powers Nullified (Sept 26-27) | PART 2 TBA (Sept 28) | OOC Plot Post

OOC NOTE
Reactions to the Part 2 plot reveal will also be threaded on this post and the comment will be unfrozen when the other posts are made. Event questions can be directed to this comment. Have fun!

Comments

[looksfine]

On the surface, Aya appeared unfazed by each and every external scanner and suction cup placed on strategic energy points and machine placed within very close proximity. Inwardly...she was still unfazed. Curious at the process, but lacking in the usual preference for preservation of her personal space.

She remained still. Absolutely. If her eyes weren't still open and moving, it would have been easy to assume she had gone off-line.

"Please inform me if there is anything you require me to do."

[highprofilerichkid]

"Nope, you're good for now." He fiddles around for a few minutes, engrossed in his scans, occasionally muttering numbers to himself or making small puzzled noises.

Eventually he turns to her, brows furrowed, and says, "well, I'm getting really low power readings across the board, but I can't figure out what's causing it. It's almost like you're in sleep mode - everything's on standby except your core functions. You don't have a low-power setting that could have gotten accidentally switched on, do you?"

[looksfine]

It wasn't long before her expression came to mirror his.

"No such settings have been set in place. Stasis mode is only self-activated when my systems are in such danger of total depletion that my very consciousness is temporarily taken off-line."

[highprofilerichkid]

"Um..." Have you tried turning it off and turning it back on again? "Do you have a hard reboot? Some way to reset all your systems without putting your consciousness or memories at risk?"

[looksfine]

Tony, please. She wasn't just a mere robot. She was a highly sophisticated, part-organic being with a unique--

"I have already tried to do so. Twice."

...never mind.

As you were.

[highprofilerichkid]

Tony chews on the end of his pencil. "Weird. Have you been having problems before this? Over the last couple days? I thought technology wasn't being affected by whatever's messing with the foreigners' magic, because Gene and I haven't had any problems... but it does seem like a pretty big coincidence."

[looksfine]

She shook her head initially, however...his words...there was something about the way he phrased it that gave her pause.

"The computerized components of my systems remain otherwise unaffected, you are correct. It is as you say: only the energy source--which is not--appears to have been significantly depleted."

[highprofilerichkid]

"Your Green... Energy... Lantern source." Whatever it's called. "So... Just how far on the scale of Clarke's Third Law is this power source? Is it possible that it's, uh, magic-y enough to be affected?"

Tony's skeptical of his own hypothesis - like he said, Gene's rings haven't gone haywire, and technology doesn't get any closer to magic than that - but it's the only idea he has at the moment.

[looksfine]

Arthur C. Clark was an Earth scientist, and as such, the reference was not immediately apparent to her. However, there were similar rules established on Oa, and once the follow-up question had been set in place...she paused to consider.

"I am not entirely certain. However, evidence suggests that it is, in fact, on a level which is near indistinguishable from magic as far as the rules of this realm are concerned."

[highprofilerichkid]

Welp, that's about it for Tony being helpful, then. "Great." He mutters. Then, apologetically: "Sorry, I'm not going to be very useful if that's what's going on. Tech, I can do. Magic? Not so much. You might want to talk with some of the magic experts. Though, if any of them had found a way to stabilize their powers, we probably would have heard about it already. You might have to just wait it out like everyone else."

He shrugs helplessly. "If you want, I can keep running regular scans on you for as long as this lasts, to make sure nothing's getting worse."

[looksfine]

He was more helpful than he realized. Offering an answer, even if it wasn't a preferred one. Reassurance. It might not mean much scientifically, but it eased her mind some. Informed her that she was not alone in her ignorance. Or in general.

"I would greatly appreciate the time and effort. Thank you."

[highprofilerichkid]

"Yeah, of course. Any time." He pauses. "If this keeps up and the energy drop is really holding you back, I could try to hook you up to an alternate power source, like what runs my suit."

[looksfine]

"I would be remiss to ignore the thought of having a backup energy source available."

Assuming, of course, the energies were compatible; certainly, it would be enough to keep her automatic systems running. The question remained how much of her consciousness was linked to her Green Energy.

[highprofilerichkid]

"If you decide you need it, just let me know. I'll make it a priority." He gives her a small, lopsided smile, and taps his chest where the heart monitor used to be. "I know how rough it is to not be able to depend on the thing that's supposed to keep you running."

[looksfine]

She nodded.

"Thank you. Perhaps I should instal a failsafe protocol, to alert you in the event my systems are unexpectedly shut down." Because she couldn't let him know if she was offline.

[highprofilerichkid]

(Well, the idea was that she could call Tony if she noticed her power levels dropping further, before she shut down, but...) "Great idea. Need any help with the install, or have you got it under control?"

[looksfine]

(But what if she was distracted and/or otherwise occupied? That's why it was called a failsafe.)

"You assistance may prove beneficial, to ensure that the transmitting and receiving frequencies are compatible."

[highprofilerichkid]

Tony Stark is unfamiliar with the concept of failsafes. Particularly the 'safe' part.

"Okay. Let's set it up to go to my Pod." He pulls out his sleek white phone, which was at one point very cool, and is now, sans internet or phone network, essentially a paperweight. He snorts. "That's about all it's good for anyway, around here."

[looksfine]

What about the 'fail' part?

She glanced at the Pod, attempting to gauge its digital capacity at this time. "I was not aware you had already developed a portable communication device similar to those we have been beta testing here at Stark Industries for some time."

[highprofilerichkid]

Pssh, Tony's tech doesn't fail, it just... has, uh... emergent post-production features.

"The Pod?" Tony looks down at the phone, mildly surprised that she finds it notable. It's hardly the most high-tech thing in his inventory. "It's... basically just a really fancy cell phone. What have you been working on here?"

[looksfine]

Ah. Like the device that Hal Jordan insisted keeping on his person, even when the weak signal it was capable of receiving did not work beyond a certain area of Earth's surface. He kept a picture of Carol on its surface, which is what had drawn her attention to it moreso than the advancement of technology.

Similarly to Tony's. She was curious because it was foreign to her.

"We have done many projects involving the local Networks, as well as alternative frequencies to utilize in the event that the primary means of communication becomes compromised again."

[highprofilerichkid]

"Right. Of course." Dang, he really needs to get out more. "I... Crap. I really should get in on that, shouldn't I? I'd meant to see what was going on with developing an alternative network, but... I had all these project ideas, and... I guess I got distracted."

[looksfine]

"I have been informed that can happen with many carbon-based life forms."

[highprofilerichkid]

Tony chuckles. "Well, we're not perfect, but I think we do okay for ourselves."

He turns the phone on and starts messing around with it. "Anyway, let's get you set up to transmit to this." He gives her the band of frequencies that the Pod is capable of receiving, and makes some suggestions to optimize the range of the signal.

[looksfine]

Aya, meanwhile, inputted each detail into her system, fine tuning a separate frequency that would be uniquely used for communication with Tony's Pod.

"I would like to attempt a test signal. Are you prepared on your end?"