First Thesis
[At the outskirts of town you may find a girl. She's just standing there, holding her arms close in a self-hug, looking terrified. The kind of terrified where the screaming stopped a long time ago.
Just try approaching her. I dare you.]
((Ingrid can be found anywhere on the map you want to call the "edge of town." She woke up in the forest and ( Read more... )
Just try approaching her. I dare you.]
((Ingrid can be found anywhere on the map you want to call the "edge of town." She woke up in the forest and ( Read more... )
Wait, is that a very anxious and panicked-looking person he sees? Somebody who... honestly reminds him a lot of himself?
Most likely a New Feather, as they don't tend to be particularly calm...
Robert stops a few metres away from her, and asks, in a relatively anxious tone:]
E-Excuse me... might you require... assistance...?
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And it is very close to where I live...
... I would be glad to take you there. Please follow me... I know you won't wish to be too close, though. Not that I am sick with anything, as far as I know, but... I still represent a risk. [He understands now, why she's so fearful. Why she wants so much distance. It isn't just discomfort of him, as much as the irrational social-phobic part of his mind wanted to think so ( ... )
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[Ingrid follows, stepping carefully. Her bare feet are tender on the ground, and the dress is smaller than anything she usually wears. She's quiet for a while. Then-]
What did you get your professorship in? [She knows you said, but she wasn't exactly paying attention.]
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Ah... I am an astrobiologist - that is, a person who studies life outside of zir own planet, if your world does not have something like it. I have certifications in other disciplines as well, though... including chemistry and physics.
[His gaze sweeps the horizon, looking for the familiar looming form of the Battle Dome - it's always seemed almost paradoxical in Luceti, in a strange way. He would think that he would appreciate something technological to look at, but... well, what the Battle Dome represented put him off.
At any rate, he doesn't see it yet.]
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Genetics? [Ingrid has made Robert very happy.] What a wonderful field to go into... what sort of studies were you undertaking before you were taken here?
[Robert could talk about this all day, really. Funny how this is completely outside of the panic from before.]
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I've been studying the genetic difference between humans and vampires. It's quite fascinating work, actually. They are much more similar and yet much more different from us than we ever thought. [You've taken her mind off her situation. Amazing!]
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... Vampires? [He remembers them quite distinctly from Giles.] What are vampires in your multiverse like? A friend of mine claims that those in his world are extremely dangerous... but surely yours are different? [Robert is hoping for a less barbaric kind of vampire, because it was unsettling him, what Giles was saying about a species that seemed like it ought to have been sapient.]
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Ah, is that so? [This actually doesn't disturb Robert, really. And at least blood consumption doesn't necessarily kill the victim?] Are all vampires on your planet hematophages?
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On my... [She's not used to hearing someone say "on your planet" outside of TV.] I'm from earth. And yes, though it's really best if they eat some raw meat as well.
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Earth... yes, that is a multiversion of my planet then. Terra was referred to Earth in its past. [Robert says this mildly, as though it isn't a strange concept in the least.]
But I would suppose our worlds are very different multiversions, because no vampires exist in mine... at least, nothing that was ever referred to as such. And certainly I cannot remember hematophagic hominids ever existing.
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What year are you from, then, if your world used to call itself earth? And you have no vampires... then you must be from a different multiverse either way. Do you have werewolves as well? And are human the same in your world? I mean, have you been able to compare that sort of thing to other worlds? [Question overload. Have fun Robert.]
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I am from 2332 A.D., Standard Terran Years; I hear that this is significantly in the future of much of the people here, not that that seems to matter.
[He shakes his head gently.] Nothing by that name, as far as I can recall... there are wolves, yes... the few that survived the Great Cleansing, anyway. [Most apex predators took quite the hit, and with the devestation of forests...]
There are genetically modified off-Terra colonies of hominids, but in general I would say Terran Homo sapiens sapiens are at least superficially similar to the humans here. The main discrepancy is that many humans here have genetically-atypical hair or eye colours, and there are very few people who would be the standard Terran skin shade. [He looks a little awkward.] I myself am... far paler than the average Terran.
Before Luceti, I was never really able to make the comparison, save looking at genetic trends... but I lack the tools here to make more detailed analyses.
[All this talking means they're getting pretty close ( ... )
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Atypical hair and eye color? Elaborate. Are they mutations? Maybe the people in charge want to study individuals who are in some way different from the norm... [Which certainly means she qualifies.] But we really have no idea what their objective is?
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And yes, his world does have cures for this. Genetic therapy, stem cell replacement...]
Ah, well... I have seen examples of humans, or at least extremely-hominid-looking sapients, sporting such things as green, blue or purple hair... and eyes of very unique shades that would not occur genetically, such as purples that are more red in tone.
[Thoughtfully:] That may be true, but I am not certain where I slot in, unless the fact that I am not neurotypical counts.
But no, their actual objective is... relatively unknown, and they are loathe to give us this information.
[Robert suddenly pauses, noting where they are.] Ah. The Battle Dome is just ahead of us... Then it will simply be a matter of getting you inside its clinic. [Robert sounds more confident than he feels. Part of him really doesn't want to go in there.]
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