exsiliumlogs | domo arigato, mr. roboto

Entry tags:

domo arigato, mr. roboto

Date & Time: Oct. 17-19
Location: Beijing, China IN THE PASTFUTURE IDK TIME TRAVEL
Characters: Rose Lalonde (

thorny), Oz Vessalius (

velveteened)
Summary: Rose and Oz attempt to find a useful mission to embark on and wind up roped into GRAND THEFT ROOMBA instead.
Warnings: Future roombas. They've got Furby eyes, man.

[it hadn't taken much convincing to get Rose to agree to taking on a mission - as much as she didn't care for the Initiative, it was a way to get off this godforsaken moon base and maybe collect a little information of her own. a win-win situation for everyone, right?

what she hadn't counted on was the depths of stupidity that the remaining Initiative members could reach. requesting a 'useful mission' from the man working the transporter had somehow translated into 'THIS MOON BASE NEEDS FUTURE ROOMBAS' by the time it pierced his thick skull and hit what little brain matter left; the worst part of the whole mess was that he'd only thought to mention this after they'd both clambered onto the transporter, leaving no time for anything but an undignified squawk from Rose before they were whisked away into the future.

she can feel the scowl etching itself across her face as she takes stock of their current location. this was going to cause a migraine, no doubt about it]

I can't believe they seriously consider this a legitimate mission.

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( from her side, he finds himself starting to laugh. oz hasn't the faintest idea just what a roomba is supposed to be, but surely if the man from the initiative thought they'd be useful to have, they must...be something good to have? and if they're not, honestly, rose's reaction is already amusing and he's frankly more than a little pleased to just be off the moon. it's only been a few days since he's returned from the last mission, but a brief visit to earth only makes the moon base feel all the more stifling. the fresh air, sounds of a bustling city, and real weather already makes this mission more than worth it. )

Whatever they think is important, right? If it wasn't us, they would've probably needed to send someone else.

Edited 2013-10-18 00:56 (UTC)

If they think that roombas for a moon base is of vital importance than I'm afraid we're in more dire straits than I'd first assumed when it comes to competent leadership.

[grumble grumble grumble. Rose is still kind of sore that this is her first time on a mission, but the stubborn perfectionist in her is quickly taking hold and shooing out the sulky feelings. like hell was she going to let the Initiative kick her ass like this. they wanted roombas? she'd fill the entire fucking place with them, just wait and see. the whole base would be spotless in five minutes after they came back.

with a small sigh she crosses her arms and looks over at Oz]

Still, if we're here we might as well do it anyway. Shall we begin?

( he revises his earlier judgment to consider the distinct possibility that 'roombas' are not very useful at all, which raises the question of why they were sent back for them in the first place. going on a mission to get patches for gil had still been a matter of his and the other smokers' comfort and health, not unimportant matters, and they'd picked up other small necessities while they were at it as well.

he glances as rose as she looks his way, then shrugs indulgently )

I agree. Besides, it'll be fun! Have you ever been to China before, Rose?

Never. Considering any travel would have been done with my mother, perhaps that's for the best.

[she can just imagine her mother purchasing an entire antique store's wares without a second thought and littering them throughout the house as a constant reminder of Rose's lack of worldliness. it's a moment best left in the realm of the hypothetical]

I do hope you aren't implying that I ought to bring back a commemorative souvenir.

Is that so?

( he's curious at a statement like that and doesn't bother to hide it, though perhaps to off-set the prying takes to craning his neck upwards to try to find the top of some of these skyscrapers. they're at least in an alcove, which means they can see the large amounts of vehicular and people traffic without having to worry about being in anyone's way as of quite yet. the shade from the buildings only mitigates the heat and humidity so much, especially with how populated the area is.

he shades his eyes, answering without returning his gaze. )

Why not? Who knows when you'll be able to come here again, right? It shouldn't be a problem as long as it's not something too big.

The problem is less the size and more my tastes lending themselves to a high likelihood that anything that might catch my eye would most likely be terribly cursed.

[she deliberately misconstrues the inquiry into her mother as simply part of the chat about souvenirs; while Rose has no trouble complaining about her mother and the laundry list of her faults, detailing just exactly what would make travel with her so arduous feels a bit too personal to be discussing in the middle of a busy city with someone she'd only recently become acquainted with. there were too many vulnerabilities in it on her side.

so instead Rose does a little watching of her own, although unlike Oz her gaze is firmly directed groundward. the crowds hold her interest far more than the trappings of progress reaching for the smog-filled sky, both for the purpose of the mission (even before they've really begun she can't help her paranoia) and from a natural penchant for crowdwatching.]

But I suppose it all depends on whether or not we have much time after all is said and done anyway. It would be terribly impolite to turn an errand into our own personal shopping trip, wouldn't it?

But that sounds exciting!

( he says brightly, following her line of conversation. there's no need to press the earlier point, and he of all people can understand wanting to avoid the topic of parents. one might wonder from his tone if he'd genuinely find it exciting or if he's just being ridiculous — a little of both, in all honesty, and doesn't a situation like that sound like something out of a book? — or, really, if he's that dim. perhaps not the best impression to be making on someone while on a mission of all things, but it comes more naturally to him than most things. )

Though you're right. It'd be a shame if we had to go back and say we hadn't got any — ( uh ) — "broombas" because we got too distracted.

Edited 2013-10-23 14:18 (UTC)

Yes, we'd essentially be consigning ourselves to the ignoble halls of complete ineptitude if we somehow managed to bungle this one.

[her mouth twists into a frown again for a brief moment as she's reminded why exactly they're standing around discussing cursed Chinese artifacts in the first place. but a mission is a mission, so they might as well get this over with]

Any particular thoughts on how to execute this, or are we simply going to play it by ear?

First, we should find the factory.

( plans can be more easily made once they know what they've got to work with, after all. he finally drops his gaze to the crowd of people, clearly thinking. just asking around would be a bit suspicious... )

Shall we follow the smog trail, then? It's something to do while seeing if we can connect to the internet and pull up a map here.

[there were in moderately modern times, but they were also in China. Rose wasn't certain that signals would be readily available, so a backup plan of simply heading towards what appears to be the more industrialized section is necessary.

it's not like she can just read the signs. Mandarin wasn't exactly one of the things that she'd been burning to study]

( he nods at the idea, but the rest gives him some pause, even after all of these months out of his own world. )

The internet?

( exsilium has sadly never had it, leaving him fairly unfamiliar with the word or what they'll be able to do with it. )

[Rose is about to begin walking, but the question causes her to pause for a moment and adopt a faintly wary expression. she enjoys waxing poetic about many things, but even she isn't certain that she's up to the task of suddenly being required to explain the intricacies of the online highway]

Yes. I take it you weren't acquainted with it in your own universe?

[please have some kind of idea....please...]

( he laughs in a way that's meant to be reassuring (but may or may not succeed), looking a bit abashed. )

No, not at all! Even the technology in Exsilium was different from what I'm used to — but don't worry, I'm a fast learner.

[lord have mercy upon her soul, she is racking up so many karma points on this trip]

It's somewhat similar to the network system Exsilium provides us, except the connections are worldwide and there are an infinite number of forums and communication channels through which to navigate. It's also a treasure trove for information, although severe discernment is required to uncover the worthwhile tidbits as there's a severe lack of filtering.

( be strong, rose. be strong.

but he nods as he listens to that, not finding the explanation too difficult to follow. something like the exsilium network on a larger scale, if the concept of worldwide is a large thing to wrap his mind around. )

It sounds like it'd be hard to filter something like that.

( monitor it, anyway, enough to even be able to consider filtering it. )

The entire thing, yes, but with enough technological know-how blocking and filtering is achievable.

[she rolls her eyes a little with a wry expression]

And fortunately for us China is rather infamous for its remarkable progress in just that sector.

( he's — going to take her word for it. )

Well, that's lucky for us! ( and finally moves to start walking, mindful of where he enters the crowd. ) That should make things a lot easier.

[hhhhh. you know what, Oz, she's not going to even bother correcting you. instead she will follow alongside him, moving with practiced ease as if she were meant to be exactly where she was thank you very much.

once the crowd thins a little she'll pull her laptop out of her sylladex and see what she can do about a map]

Assuming that everything goes smoothly, of course.

( other things he's not going to question further include how she just did that, and also what a laptop is in the first place. or rather, since that's not a term he has any familiarity with, what the rectangular device in her hands is.

rose has the best possible partner for this mission, clearly. )

Ah, that's always the caveat.

Some things never change.

[if she knew about that then Rose would have a brief flicker of doubt at her usual stance of GO WITH ANYONE WHO WANTS TO DO DANGEROUS SHIT REGARDLESS OF BACKGROUND

as it is, she begins fiddling with her laptop in search of an online map of some sort]

But I think we may get a break for once, as it's a simple map that tourists would need to access on a regular basis.

Good point.

( glancing around the city is enough to give him an idea of how many tourists it likely sees, both from its size and splendor and the sheer number of overpriced knickknacks visible on sale in the storefronts and stalls. some things really do never change.

they can always ask as well, language facilitated by some initiative technology or other, but no need to draw attention to themselves as interested prematurely. )

Have you found something?

I believe so. Have a look.

[she moves to the side of the street a bit to keep out of other pedestrians way and balances the laptop on an open palm, using the other to point out the pertinent areas of the map she's pulled off the Beijing government website]

They've labeled most of the buildings, so it's really a matter of getting our current bearings and heading out.

( he moves with her, peering over her shoulder at the map in question. )

That's convenient.

( technology, man. he looks from the screen to the buildings around them, looking for some sort of obvious landmark. )

I think we're...

( trailed off as he glances back with a slight frown. so many buildings that look alike, geez! but then he thinks of something else, checking for street names. )

The character-based language barrier dulls the convenience a bit, yes.

[she follows his lead though, looking for street signs with characters she can actually remember long enough to match to the ones on the map. her finger taps at the screen, moving every now and then as she attempts to readjust for more accuracy]

Ahahah, it's better than nothing.

( though it's...not exactly easy. he finds himself double-taking every time she readjusts — technology, man — but doesn't complain. )

...here?

( he gestures at a string of characters on the screen and then a nearby sign. )

[Rose looks at the aforementioned sign, and for a brief moment her face screws up into a baffled expression that belies her age. then she shrugs lightly, plastering calmness over it once more]

Close enough. If we find ourselves straying we can always check the map again.

( he almost laughs at the expression but checks himself, though he can't quite help the (not unkind) smile. )

Exactly! No one in an adventure ever knew exactly where they were going all the time.

( HOW REASSURING. in any case, he looks back at the map, reaching out to trace a line of one of the roads.

and possibly accidentally zooming in oops. )

[~~and then Oz was me using a smartphone~~

Rose lets what she's sure is his condescending (in her mind) laughter at her pass since the sudden view of an incredibly pixelated bit of Beijing is far more amusing. she smiles a little herself and nods, making the executive decision that for the time being that there has been enough technology poking and prodding and gently closing it down for the moment]

Then let us begin the critical portion of our journey which involves only a vague understanding of our path. Hopefully there won't be too many dragons waiting to block our progress.

( touchscreens are really hard okay.

it's maybe with a bit of relief that he watches her shut down the laptop for the time being. it's with some wryness he answers, remembering most of his encounters with dragons (not especially pleasant) — )

I hope so too.

( he's energized, though, starting off in the direction to their intended destination. let grand theft roomba begin. )

Edited 2013-11-02 21:44 (UTC)

[and off they go! thankfully their ability to recognize characters isn't as shit as they'd thought, and after a modest amount of travel time the roomba factory looms up at them from across the street. Rose pauses to stare at it, shading her eyes slightly against the sun to get a better look at the upper levels]

I believe this is the prime moment to begin sorting through our strategy ideas.

You're right.

( he echoes her gesture, aiming to see what he can of it. there aren't any especially visible security measures that jump out at him right now, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. )

Do you think there'd be more information about it on the internet?

Not anywhere we could access or understand, I think. Factories aren't exactly hot tourist destinations.

[she sighs a little]

But then, neither are ones which produce automated cleaning supplies particularly large targets for thieves. We may not actually have much in the way of security to navigate.

( WAIT

A

SECOND )

...automated cleaning supplies?

Yes. Did I fail to mention their use?

[of course she did and of course it was kind of obvious that Oz didn't know what they were. Rose's smirk is good-natured, yes, but it's still teasing]

( he — you know what, he laughs it off. no wonder she was so irritated by the mission. )

A little! I guess keeping the base clean is as important as everything else.

Yes, I can just see the board meeting which resulted in base hygiene tying with military expenditures for the most budget funding allocated.

[aka THIS WOULDN'T SURPRISE ME THE PEOPLE IN THE INITIATIVE ARE BASICALLY AS INTELLIGENT AS BRICKS]

If that's the case then I suppose we ought to do our best to acquire as many as possible. It shouldn't be too difficult so long as we can get in relatively smoothly - I have quite a few cards left in my sylladex.

Your sylladex?

( what is that WHERE DO CARDS COME INTO IT.... )

It's how I store things. Quite convenient for hauling around bulky objects such as our target as well as grocery shopping.

[you know what she's just going to leave it vague and magicky because she doesn't think she can explain it well enough here]

( vague and magicky works, and he nods. HAMMERSPACE, HE CAN GET THAT. )

So transporting them shouldn't be hard. That's good to hear.

Well, I imagine that there was some reason beyond a cruel sense of humor that I was chosen for this mission.

[...probably]

The only remaining obstacle, then, is settling on a method to get ourselves inside. I suppose it's a toss-up between stealth and brazen bluffing.

Don't worry, don't worry! I can handle that.

( by a bit of both, honestly. helps that they're both young and fairly innocuous-looking, to allay suspicions. )

I sincerely hope so. Should anything go wrong, it will be you who suddenly develops an acute case of appendicitis.

[aah, if only they both weren't so blonde this really would be the perfect crime]

( the blonde hair is to lull people into a false sense of security...! in any case, he only laughs at that, and without further ado moves to approach the building.

there's no immediate need to worry about skulking around, not in broad daylight; it may be amusing and dramatic, but acting as though they belong is what's going to serve them well at this moment. )

Edited (words???) 2013-11-06 06:11 (UTC)

[thankfully acting like she knows exactly what she's doing at all times is one of Rose's specialties. she strides forward with practiced ease, not even hesitating as she reaches the door and holds it open for her cohort.

does she really have a background story prepared for if they're questioned? not particularly. but she'll work it out when the time comes.]

( he nods in thanks as he strolls straight in, hit immediately with a blast of air conditioning. ah, cities.

there's a front desk with a secretary at it, who looks up at the two visitors who've just let themselves in. she doesn't question them just yet, only offers a greeting that gets automatically translated for them by some initiative technology, but keeps her eyes on them. )

[Rose smiles pleasantly and inclines her head in the secretary's direction, returning the greeting with very little unease. with no pause she moves past the desk, not quite ready to attempt to make her way towards anything that visitors shouldn't be touching yet - they still need to size up the inside of this place]

( oz keeps pace with her, nodding in the direction of the elevators — there's a convenient color-coded mini-map on the wall between them, presumably to help new visitors and employees know where they're going. )

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domo arigato, mr. roboto

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