6257/Techno-Wizard Introduction

Techno-Wizard Introduction
Date of Scene:	23 December 2018
Location:	Bar & Grill at the End of the Multiverse
Synopsis:	A bunch of people get hungry and end up at the Bar & Grill. Reyes meets people. Discussion turns to the subject of Staren's hometown and its noninterventionist policies.
Cast of Characters:	Staren, 6857, Athela Valemore, Count Kord, Kotone Yamakawa

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Staren has posed:
    Staren has been so busy working on something or other that he forgot to eat! Not feeling like making a sandwich or waiting the hour or more it would take to print out a meal, he's come to the Bar & Grill for an extremely late supper. At the moment he's sitting at a table by himself, eating spoonfulls of some kind of meat-and-potato stew.

    Randomly, he finds himself wondering if the Glitch have an alien counterpart to potatoes or not.

Reyes (6857) has posed:
    Not long ago, after getting embroiled in the Paladins introduction radio stuff, after a long session of working on a new gadget, Reyes is STARVING. Possibly even a little hangry. So he turned around towards the workshop door, hands in his jacket pockets with his goggles down, strolled on through...

    And, somehow or another, finds himself roaming into the same dining hall as Staren.

    The young man freezes right where he stands, going straight as an arrow. Like a robot, he looks left, right, up, down... then straight.

    Finally, shaking freakishly, he brings both hands to his goggles and lifts them, revealing blue eyes that are as wide with out-of-place shock as one can get.

    "The hell...? Did a rift open in the door...?" The man might be heard murmuring. Or perhaps lip-read.

    Nervously, he wanders beyond the doorway and into the hall, maneuvering around a few tables and looking INCREDIBLY lost and disoriented all the while.

    After a few seconds, he snaps those goggles back into place.

Athela Valemore has posed:
While even she could not deny that she needed time to recover from the extreme battle with the Steel Titan, Athela wasn't really the sort to just lay in a bed until she was better. That, and despite being a native of the coast and knowing her family meant well she could only take fish stew for so long. So instead she went looking for a dietary variation. As long as she stayed out of trouble it should be fine, right?

It's pretty obvious she's not up to standard just walking into the B&G@EotMV. She had the cloak but none of her usual armor. Just a simple tunic and leggings, enough to keep her bandages and bruises covered. Though her sword is still tucked into her belt, because it will be hell and high water before she doesn't have that on her person.

Though once she gets to the menu she starts to wonder if this was such a good idea. None of these dishes make any sense to her.

Staren has posed:
    Staren's ears perk up at Reyes' words. "It's the Bar & Grill..." Before he can say more on the subject though, his face turns to look at Reyes... and his eyes are drawn to that jacket. "...Are you a techno-wizard?" He sounds surprised. Obviously people from his Earth get around the Multiverse, but he doesn't run into them much.

    Also, Athela is here! After he last saw her pretty badly hurt just a few days ago! "Hey there. Feeling better?" He then looks back to Reyes, but one ear turns towards Athela.

Reyes (6857) has posed:
    "The where?" Reyes, utterly lost, turns to follow the voice and finds himself looking straight at Staren. Is that recognition there? No. At first it's confusion. But then a narrowing of the eyes. Fierce and intense. A smidge of INTENSE CONCENTRATION that's over in a moment and then recognition. Lips part as if the man's going to say something, but several seconds pass in awkward silence. He slowly withdraws his hands from his pockets and steps to the side to take a look at the other person moving about...

    And has to struggle not to jawdrop. "A knight...? A girl knight?" More murmuring to himself, though since she's closer, Athela would have no trouble hearing. Reyes sounds a bit awed. Whether that's because of 'girl', 'knight', 'either', or 'both' is hard to tell at a glance though.

    The young man rapidly shakes his head though to clear it. Then answers Staren. "Yeah, that's right. The name's Reyes. ... You probably don't know me. But I saw your face in Castle Refuge's news a few times... Staren?"

Athela Valemore has posed:
Athela's attention is drawn from trying to interpret the menu by hearing a somewhat familiar voice. As in its familiar but she's use to hearing Staren through whatever method he speaks from his mechanical devices rather than in person. "In comparison to being almost dead, yes," she replies, absently running a hand back through her hair.

Then turns towards Reyes at his small outburst of surprise and regards him for a moment. One could be insulted, but she's dealt with the Multiverse long enough to accept one thing or another of her presence being odd to others. All it really does is indicate he's 'new' to things, and she remembers being in that position at one point.

"You two are from the same realm?", she asks as she turns back to Staren again. She was going to ask if they knew each other, but had to adjust when the guy already voiced a negative to that on his own. A pause, and then she rubs her head again. "... And do you know what best to get off this 'menu'?" A somewhat hapless gesture. "None of these meals are familiar to me."

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord doesn't need to eat.

    That's why it's strange to see him step through the door. Well... step might be putting it mildly. The door he slips through bulges around him as it takes on the vague shape of the great castle doors he uses for his home, the big Pokemon, standing about twenty feet tall, ambles through, careless of the foot traffic. When he spots Staren talking to someone, he wanders over and stops nearby, seating himself up and puffing up his 'feathers.' He sniffs in and makes a comfortable rumbling noise, and digs in a satchel he has strapped to his body so he can carry things around.

    "I will be paying for the food," he announces to the gathered group. "You're welcome."

    Besides that comment, he seems content to sit around, being a big ole bird-dragon.

Staren has posed:
    Staren quirks an eyebrow at Reyes's long pause, but hey, maybe the guy has a brain computer and is looking something up. He looks mildly surprised at the young man's words. "Castle Refuge has heard of /me/? Good things, I hope." He looks back to Athela. "Yes. He's from... mm... another settlement."

    He glances between Athela and the menu. "...Ah! I see." He pulls a tablet from his bag and shows pictures of the animals the meat comes from: "Chicken. Beef. Pork. Does that help a little?" He's sure there are similar pokemon, although he can only think of tauros off the top of his head.

    And hey, Kord is here too! "Count. Good to see you." He nods a greeting.

Reyes (6857) has posed:
    It takes a bit for Reyes to realize he might be being a bit overly rude to Athela. He subsequently sidesteps away from her to give her some more space. "Huh, cool." Is his end verdict on her presence! Although... then he's given something NEW to deal with. A shadow's cast through the doorway. A mighty shadow.

    Kord's shadow.

    The Techno-Wizard's swiftly shuffling out of that thing's way, moving to seat himself at the same table as Staren - although he does briefly wait for Staren to raise an objection before pulling out the chair and seating himself.

    "It wasn't lambasting you or anything. So, I guess?" Is his non-commital answer.

    Although it might be expected from someone of this profession, this young man doesn't seem too terribly comfortable with socializing. Still, he grabs a spare menu... and looks at Kord.

    "... I don't know you... are you sure?"

    He then asks Staren, "Do they take universal, black, or NG creds here? Wherever 'here' is. I haven't eaten in twenty hours... I think."

    Once more he looks towards Kord. "Can I ask... who and what are you?"

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone looked normal enough though her hair was a teal or cyan colour and she was weing a sleeveless long jacket with right pants boots and a shirt on under the jacket. She hears someone say Staren, and she'll home in on that as she spots whom she presume as Reyes who seems to be BSODing at the idea of a Dame for a moment she'll look at him for a moment.

"Reyes I preusme?"

Kotone looks human enough but there's something strange about here and if one looked at her eyes those would scream artfiacal, very high quality but clearly artfical and as she moves her head the pluggs on the back of her neck might be visable she pauses.

"Staren, Count Corde, Dame Valemore."

Shje'll interject "They take about anything for the most part."

Staren has posed:
    Staren tilts his head slightly at being told that 'well, it wasn't lambasting you.' "Hmh." It's still weird to think he could be on the news, but of course, he's a public figure now. At Reyes's question about money, he nods. "Yeah. I wish people wouldn't call the Coalition's money 'universal', ugh. Hmm, there's a thought, I wonder if some innovation in currency technology could displace it?"

    And now Kotone's here! Staren gives her a curious look, "Kotone! You know him?"

Athela Valemore has posed:
"Ah!" Athela grabs the tablet and peers at it. Once she's got a visual reference it becomes much easier to make sense of things. "Much help, thank you." She'd bow on gratitude, but that would aggrivate her sore ribs.

And then there's -that- voice. Though it's not until Athela turns enough to look towards the source to get a real surprise, seeing Kord in his true form. Which, as intimidating as it is... is also kind of silly, sitting there admist a resturaunt. "Count. It's... interesting to see you out so... natural," she finally decides on, not wanting to really start some sort of scene. "And generous, thank you."

And another more familiar face arrives. "Miss Yamakawa, hello."

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord leeeeans in to get a close look at Reyes, his great big monstrous eye fixated on him for several seconds. Then he lifts his head and says, imperiously, "I am Count Kord of Dragoni, of the lands of Bayern, and Partner of the Concord. Brood of the great death god. That is, I am one of such beings, a Yveltal. A Pokemon." And then he says, "Yes, I am sure. Do not question my generosity," as if clearly offended that he would do anything but be grateful. He looks to Staren, and nods in his direction once.

    Athela's comment gets him to briefly squint at her. No reply. Just... squiiint.

Reyes (6857) has posed:
    Welp. Reyes DID ask. But the answer that Count Kord gives is more than a little intimidating. It leaves Reyes just kind of rudely staring, frozen up. After a good five seconds, he swallows, reaches up... and adjusts his goggles using both index and middle fingers of his right hand.

    That's the second time someone introduced themselves by a string of intimidating titles.

    "I'm just Reyes the Techno-Wizard. ... So, thanks." Granted, most people would probably run screaming from a thing that looked like Kord.

    And with Kotone getting near... the young man flinches, shoulders bunching up. He recovers swiftly though, nodding quietly to Kotone as he examines her. His eyes move with analytical intensity, widening behind the goggles. Goggles that he quickly raises to his forehead, as if he might trust clear vision better for her.

    "These cybernetics... how did anyone manage to pack so much power into such a sleek form? Everything's beautifully miniaturized...!" Once again he's faced with a case of AW, though this time it's gaping at Kotone.

Staren has posed:
    Staren gives a friendly nod in response to Athela's thanks. He doesn't bother taking the tablet back. He can always fabricate more!

    Now he looks between Reyes and Kotone as a series of questions and realizations hit. "What are you talking about? We have similar stuff on our world, have you never seen the specs for an infiltration model? ...Wait, how'd you tell just by LOOKING? ...Ah, right. Techno-wizard."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa says "Kinda he's a new co worker I came to say hello."

"Good to meet you in the flesh Reyes how are .... you?"

She blings several times at him for a moment as he brings up her prosetics for a moment. "Micro machines or what you might call nanites play a part in that and I'm more into vechile than shells. There were several serious decades of conflict that pushed the technology's development which started just a bit before I was born, the third and fouth world wars were ... interesting times. In the way you want to curse someone to live in interesting times, way."

Athela Valemore has posed:
At this point Athela has gone back to ordering something to eat and isn't paying attention to Kord's squinting gaze, or the general aura of creepiness he has around him. It's an effect he has, just on being what he is, and she's determined to not let it bother her. Her stomach has started to rumble for something other than fish so her attention is back on the menu, and finally decides on a basket of chicken drumsticks.

That and the other three are talking about cyborgs and stuff. Still a bizarre thing to deal with even after having met several by this point.

Reyes (6857) has posed:
    Upon realizing that they serve basically ANYTHING here, Reyes decides to settle on the local variety of pizza. After all, if there's leftovers, he can drag them back with him and not worry about food for a few days.

    Kotone's explanation to things gets the young man frowning though. A world war 3 and 4? "... That's two other worlds where things went awry, besides mine-- ours." Disappointing and disheartening, really.

    He turns to face down Staren with a somewhat critical eye. "Guess I haven't. But I don't think it'd look like this!"

    "... Guess you wouldn't need to eat much with a body like that." He points out to Kotone. "... Did you really come here just for me..?" An eyebrow's quirked in some amazement. That's hard to believe.

    A few moments pass. He glances between Kotone and Staren. "... Ah. The Lazlo friend you mentioned. It's Staren?"

Staren has posed:
    Staren doesn't mean to ignore Athela or Kord, but the discussion does interest him. Sometimes an ear briefly rotates towards them.

    "Co-worker? Ah. Congrats on joining the Paladins." He glances back to Kotone. "Funnily enough, they're usually known as micromachines or microbots or something on our world too. Never really developed nanotech for anything besides medical use, and it's hella expensive."

    He shrugs to Reyes at the mention of world wars. "Her Earth's got way more infrastructure left, though I understand a few places didn't fare well." He nods at the mention of Lazlo, as well.

    "So... is you joining the Paladins a personal thing, or is the Tomorrow Legion doing outreach to other worlds now?"

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa looks to him for a moment and says "Actually I do need to eat a little and I do so to remind myself I'm still human." She grins widely "I can never get fat now." She gets an amused look she also shrugs. "Some good cam out of it Japan develed technology that can clean up Fallout and radio active waste. So we're not some nuclear hell world at least."

She looks to Staren for a moment nodding.

"They are huge buiness here medical, farming, mechanical."

Athela Valemore has posed:
That's okay if she's somewhat ignored at the moment, the conversation has gone to topics very much over Athela's head. She does slide the tablet back to Staren though. Would be rude to not return it to the owner. "So many different worlds... yet things like War and Innovation remain constants in some way."

Reyes (6857) has posed:
    "The Legion's been trying to gain Commonwealth attention and support to help restore some order, security, and quality of life to North America. Me joining the Paladins is all about that." Reyes answers clearly... if a bit vaguely, at the same time. An uncomfortable topic?

    "I'm surprised Lazlo isn't doing the same. But they try to stay out of anything and everything... can't blame 'em, though."

Staren has posed:
    Staren listens intently. An alliance between The Tomorrow Legion and the Commonwealth? Good to know about.

    As Reyes mentions his home city-state's insistance on staying out of everything, Staren looks away, awkwardly. He is not exactly proud of Lazlo's repeated inaction.

    "...I'm not in charge of Lazlo. But I've helped others on my own, and with the Union, and with the League, and with the Concord."

Count Kord has posed:
    "Cowardly," Kord comments, on the subject of Lazlo. He lifts his nose and closes his eyes haughtily.

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa Says "There's a whole lot of Purging to be done, to borrow a phase from a friend of mine. I heard there's still some remants of the Canada and the US is there, Quebec out lived us all there from what I hear and well the CS sound a hell of a lot like the Empire of America back home."

She looks over to Athela for a moment. "It really does, seem that way."

Reyes (6857) has posed:
    On that note? Reyes glances over at Kord. His brow furrows slightly. And he folds his arms. "It's a tiny city of mages, who want to promote magic, education, and tolerance of others caught between two technological nations who hate magic and aliens. I'm told the reason they don't take action is to avoid being seen as a threat and pounced by both sides."

Staren has posed:
    Staren hangs his head at Kord's words.

    After an awkward moment, he looks back at Reyes and adds. "Lazlo doesn't help directly. But because of it, people who do have a safe place to find support and resupply. To find others of like mind. And where the next generation of heroes can learn about magic and technology in safety. It's less active... less direct then I'd like, but Lazlo clearly has an /indirect/ influence on making the world better. Lazlo didn't send the self-defense force to Tolkeen. But many citizens /did/ fight. And Lazlo was there to take in refugees after. ...Perhaps that is Plato and Thomm's plan."

Athela Valemore has posed:
Athela Valemore huffs softly to herself. "On one hand one cannot blame them for putting concern for their own first... on the other, the excluding helping and getting help entirely seems... short sighted." Then Reyes chimes in. "... Though that perhaps is also a significant reason. "Trapped between the sleeping Ursaring and the hungry Salamence, wanting to disturb neither."

Count Kord has posed:
    Kord considers their words. He opens one eye to look at Reyes, puffing a sigh of annoyance at the correction. But it's further explained, and so he gives it some thought. "That is not inaction," he points out, "They are simply using their resources wisely. By leaving their borders open to travellers, they allow the lifeblood of change to flow through their roads and taverns. They aren't 'staying out of it,' they are simply avoiding being overt." Largely a rehash of what was said. "A clever country is more powerful than a direct country, no matter its size."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa looks to Reyes for a moment as she listens and nods. "If they want to be agressively neutral it's their right, and Reyes you should see my bike I designed later." She grins a bit at him "We were going to talk shop, right?"

Athela Valemore has posed:
Athela Valemore ruffles a hand through her hair. "Perhaps I was a bit brash on my 'no help or helping' remark." That's a little awkward... but hey, her food is here. Distraction! Athela promptly chows in on a drumstick if only to keep herself from saying something else awkwardly bad for a bit.

Staren has posed:
    Staren's spirits seem lifted by Kord's commentary! He smiles and shakes his head at Athela. "It's alright. Certainly, it's a complaint many people in my world have made... So much so that a bunch of people went and founded New Lazlo." Staren rests his elbow on the table and his chin in his hand. "Although, for all the talking the people of New Lazlo do, they never seem to /do/ anything either... But, as you say," he turns to Kord. "perhaps getting people to do all that talking, and the kind of thinking that leads to it, is more action than it seems."

Reyes (6857) has posed:
    "I wouldn't know. Certainly don't know enough about statecraft. I work with machines." Reyes firmly states towards Kord and Staren, bunching up his shoulders into a shrug. He does nod quickly at Kotone's proposal though! "Motorcycles you said, wasn't it? Your world doesn't have hovercycles?"