646/Heavy Burdens

Heavy Burdens
Date of Scene:	21 September 2014
Location:	The Homeworld
Synopsis:	Ariel visits Burden for a more relaxed chat.
Cast of Characters:	40, 219, 347, 383
Tinyplot:	When They Return

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Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    Dr. Burden's home is as chaotic as ever. When you walk through the innocent-looking door, you come out in a place that seems to be bits and pieces of other places, a floating amalgam of other times. Office spaces, parking lots, school rooms, sections of people's houses, all sorts of things like that are drifting around. The door is some form of spatial warp that links to Dr. Burden's home high above the Homeworld, where he wanders around these drifting pieces of reality.

    Tonight, he's camped out, cooking something over a fire in what looks like the back half of a convenience store. You can get to him easily if you traverse the side of a small theater. The man himself is simple, excessively so. His body is clearly human, but devoid of literally any features. All there is to see is humanoid whiteness, with a pair of dark circles marking the eyes. But as soon as he realizes he has visitors, there's a quick flicker, and the man's altered his form to something more personable: A heavily-tanned, aging man with graying silver hair, wearing a practical outfit that seems like a mix between the uniform of a scientist and the uniform of a blacksmith, themed with blue colors.

Ariel (219) has posed:
"Hello, Doctor!" Ariel is cheerful enough as she calls from the nearby theatre. Hopping over a few moments later, she shakes herself off and lets Diea tumble freely back again, wearing just the Abstractum today. "I hope you don't mind the visit. I just had some things to talk about and um... figured you might not want to worry about the usual arguments and stuff coming up. So I brought a few friends you might not have really met." Well, he's probably met Eleanor, but maybe not well.

She flashes a smile. "I ah... don't know if you remember me. I'm Ariel, and this is Harmonious Diea. We're usually pretty quiet when you're around, I know." She'll let the others give their own intro.

Eleanor Lamb (40) has posed:
    Miss Lamb shuffles in with Miss Ariel, looking slightly apprehensive about this whole affair, really. She's met the man on multiple occasions, she was there when the fellow unvield her... her crowd of Not-Splicers in the homeworld, but she's still never really gotten a chance to talk. So, that's why she's here with the Princess, coming to talk. She grips lightly at Utopia, and float-jumps her way through the mess.

    The meeting with the Doctor is... interesting. That transformation is always abrupt but natural, like it's supposed to be like that. Elle raises her hand and Utopia in greeting, and murmurs. "It's nice to meet you properly like this, sir. I never did get a chance to make that counseling session I tried to set up with you so long ago."

Laine (383) has posed:
    Laine is in wolf form, and she hops next to Ariel with a wagging tail. She doesn't seem like the prying type though, as she only gives a rough growl in greeting. <<Laine and Soaring Silver.>> Then the wolf just sort of curls up next to Ariel protectively, apparently taking on the task of bodyguard of the young unicorn today. <<Hello.>>

Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    He's made the swap as soon as he heard the girls coming in. A friendly wave and a smile is given to her. "Hi there, Miss. Don't mind at all. Greetin's to ya both. and good to see a fresh face. No need to worry about my memory. I'm old, not senile." He chuckles a bit and makes a few solemn nods to Eleanor afterwards. "I don't mind it, Miss. You're busy folk and this old man's a bit of a relic. I'm not gonna hold that against you."

    There's a bit of a smile at the wolf and the collar she has. "Now isn't that a sight. Not seen someone like that with an Abstractum this cycle around. Nice to meet you both." He starts getting out the stew he was cooking, ladeling it into a bowel. "You folks hungry?"

Eleanor Lamb (40) has posed:
    Elle smiles quietly, and nods. "I'd love some stew, actually. Or, the concept of congealed nutritious material, in any case." A brilliant grin, and the young lady pulls up a... uh. Convienence store. It's a milk crate. As good a seat as any.
    "And I certainly wouldn't think you senile, Doctor."

Ariel (219) has posed:
"Maybe a little," Ariel answers politely. She isn't all that hungry, but she is curious what kind of stew he'd make. "I just wasn't sure we were ever properly introduced. It's always been so busy when you're around. One reason I wanted to talk quietly. I just wanted..."

Ariel pauses, her ears twitching a few times. "I wanted to talk about some serious things in a way that wasn't, you know. Judging. I wanted to talk about what you were thinking when you created the Abstractum. If there's stuff you'd rather not answer in there just say so."

Laine (383) has posed:
    Hmm. Lapping at stew with tongue would be rude, so Laine should shift. Since she has no idea of human manners, even now, she just sits and thumps her tail waiting for some stew! <<Laine guarding Ariel! Is good girl.>> She means Ariel is a good girl, but it might not come across that way.

    Laine tilts her head at what Ariel has to say though. Her ear perks up, and she keeps her eyes on Ariel, not Burden. It's an unnaturally intense stare.

Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    "Nah, no concept-food here. Genuine Roussean recipe." A wry smile comes from the old man as he hands the warm bowel off to Elle, then to Ariel and Laine, if she wants one! Speaking of Ariel, a response to her as well. "Don't worry, Miss. I've seen enough folks come and go that I can't fault you for not wasting the time you've got to talk to a man like me. If I can answer your questions, I'll do my best to." And there's another little, good-humored smile to Laine. "Don't you worry, Miss. With my own Abstractum gone, I stand a better chance of being killed by Miss Ariel here than doing anything to hurt her, with that cloak on her. Promise I'll be nice, though."

Ariel (219) has posed:
Settling in with the stew, Ariel murmurs a thanks, and then appears to stop and think of what to say. As if she hadn't considered it long and hard. "I'm sorry if it's a little... hard to talk about, but I noticed how you seemed to act during the Node Configuration. And... I've been thinking about my own Node, and Samael, and what I know of what's happened in previous cycles. And being what I am... I just have to know a few things."

She takes a deep breath. "I just want to confirm something. The... the Node Reconfiguration. The measures that the Homeworld is taking. All of these extreme things... they weren't what you originally planned were they? You created the Abstractum and now the whole war has turned into something you didn't expect, hasn't it? Which makes me wonder if their original purpose wasn't something different from what we think."

Eleanor Lamb (40) has posed:
    "Oh! Well, that's pleasant." Eleanor takes up the stew bowl and plucks up a plastic spoon and takes a bie of... admiteddly pretty good stew. Though that's hard to do wrong. She looks up at Burden, and then gets to business. "Though, I have to ask if /you/ would have showed up for an examination at that point."
    Elle takes another bite as Ariel starts her questioning. She's got a follow up to that once Answers are Delivered.

Laine (383) has posed:
    Laine pauses in mid-lick of the stew. Oh yeah, she'll try it. But Ariel's question, more than anything, has her pausing and looking at the unicorn girl again. Then she turns her head, peering at Burden with a cautious sniff. She hasn't really tried to use any of her supernatural senses on him yet, but it does make her curious if he has any particular 'alignment' she can sense. Not in the good/evil way, but in her world's terms. Order vs Chaos, Creation vs. Stagnation.

Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    Dr. Burden makes some alright stew. Nothing special or fancy. Genuine Roussean spices are a unique taste, a particularly southern kind of flavor, but a more gentle, friendly kind. It's good to eat.

    He sighs and hangs his head over the bowl a bit, solemnly. "...No war is ever what anyone expected." He says, after a long pause. "I built them to do what they had to. To make the Great Weapon. And they did. Wasn't up to me, the how or the what, only the why. Least, not entirely."

    There's a heavy sigh. "The first one I ever made... Well the process that made her, I'd say, was one I made without knowing what I was getting into. Everything after... I don't like it. I wish there was another way. But the Networks and the Homeworld, they're doing what they're doing for the reasons I wanted 'em to. No question about that."

    There's a bit of a good-natured smile to Eleanor. "Can't rightly say I know for sure. But, who knows? Probably." Laine, meanwhile, finds that Dr. Burden smells like creation, order, and a generalized inclination, in some capacity, to protect and cultivate the world, whatever of that her keen snout might pick up.

Eleanor Lamb (40) has posed:
    Elle sighs at the bits about war, before pointing vaguely in the direction of the chambers they had come from towards the Homeworld. "And the previous cycles, I can only assume there were... many. How many were there before you created this System, or were you able to start the cycle yourself?"
    Another bite of stew.

Ariel (219) has posed:
Ariel nods slowly, but it's Eleanor that asks the real question. "That's... that's what I'm wondering. Were the Abstractum created because of the threat of Them... or were They drawn here because you created the Abstractum?" There's nothing accusing in her voice, actually. It more has the tone of someone asking in order to lead up to something else. Burden, being a scientist, should recognize that.

Laine (383) has posed:
    Laine doesn't have much to add here except to snort softly and go back to her stew. The only thing she says is a soft rumbled, <<Ariel has wanting for self?>>

Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    "...It's a little egotistical of me, callin' the cycle where I made the Abstractum the 'First Cycle'. It wasn't. They've been killin' realities long before me or my world.It's not the Abstractum that bring Them around. It's you. It's people. They only show up when people do. And then, they take those people out with 'em." Burden says, between solemn bites. He's got the posture of a man who's trying to explain a dog's death to a child, or something like that. Lot of rough facts he doesn't like thinking about.

    "Been going for a long time before the Cycles. Never had a Cycle where They crashed the party before civilization started up. Even had a Cycle where no Abstractum got made, the one time. No dice." He shakes his head. "You sound like you've got somethin' you wanna ask me about, Miss. What're you thinking?"

Ariel (219) has posed:
Ariel scratches behind one ear. "Um... I see." Well, one theory shot down, but good to know that! "And yes... yes I do. If you... if you could have made them differently, somehow, so they wouldn't do the things you don't like... would you? And how would you do it? It's important to me, and... I won't think any less of you no matter what the answer."

She pauses and taps her forefingers together. "Sorry if this is a little uncomfortable, but you created something big, and how it ended up... I have reasons."

Eleanor Lamb (40) has posed:
    A nod from the Sister, and she murmurs. "I suppose it was worth a shot on that one, but... if there was a cycle where you didn't distribute Abstractum... ah, where... where did you surf past the Ending? Do you just come along on the ride with Them?"
    Ellie takes another bite of stew. That's a much more personal question than she would have expected out of Ariel.

Laine (383) has posed:
    Laine's ears perk, twitch, and suddenly lay flat. She growls, but the growl fades swiftly. She looks at Ariel curiously again before apparently realizing why she's asking this. <<Is for Ariel?>>

Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    Dr. Burden taps the edge of his bowl with a bit of agitation. "I built the Homeworld to give absolute priority to protectin' whatever reality manages to get drummed up between Them returning. Everything it does, it's all for saving whatever it can. And even then, it's... Failed, more times than I think your reality's version of math is any good for countin'."

    There's a light bit of uncomfortable fidgeting. "Would I have done it different? Maybe. If /every/ cycle is doomed to fail no matter what, I'd rather not have done anything. But if there's any chance... No. More cycles dying 'cause of some new priorities? No."

    Eleanor's question is a less heavy subject. "Homeworld couldn't get a fix on the way the local sapient life worked on a few of the cycles. It still managed to exist... Didn't defend 'em for long when They came around, of course. The Homeworld reconstructs every Cycle, though, and I came along with it."

Ariel (219) has posed:
Ariel reaches over and pets Laine's head. "It's not really for me. It's for Doctor Burden." She smiles to Burden then, while scritching the wolf. "I'm actually glad you feel that way. I... I don't like what the Homeworld is doing. I think it's wrong. And I think you're wrong, too, in thinking it's necessary."

The little unicorn looks over at Eleanor's question, which is a good one, then back to Burden. "But what I really want to know, then, is why you made the first Abstractum. Was it just a science experiment? A weapon? Or something more?"

Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    It's a little hard to see Burden's eyes now, so one can't really see what expression he's trying to make. He seems to start saying several things in sequence, and none of them are what he wants to say. Eventually he struggles through it and says, "It was complicated. And, the reasons were only anything that was ever important to this... To this stupid old man. It's not anything worth it t'know. Just some old fool's private reasons. Got all... Got all lost, muddled up, caught up in some big war. Something more important."

    He shakes his head. "I don't like Them, but, some things They buried, they're better off staying buried. I promise I'd tell you, if knowing would do you any good."

Laine (383) has posed:
    <<Is always important,>> Laine interjects suddenly. She doesn't press for an answer, though. She's mainly here to back up Ariel, after all. <<Laine world shaped by desires. Wanting... important.>>

Eleanor Lamb (40) has posed:
    Eleanor hrumphs. "Mine was created by old men thinking they didn't need the government to stomp all over them, so they stomped all over each other. No one choice is the right one, ever."

Ariel (219) has posed:
"It matters," Ariel agrees. "And it doesn't matter! Because you really can't control anything once you give it a will of its own. I think you know that. And I think you're guilty that your children have to be tools of war. And I think you think of them that way because I saw how you looked at your own Abstractum." She takes a deep breath. "But I also think maybe I shouldn't talk about this more. I don't want to trouble you, I just want to understand better. I want to understand Them. Samael. Why everything happened and how we can stop it without turning into monsters."

She takes a deep breath and settles in with her stew. "I have a lot I want to ask you. About Samael and other things. But um... not tonight. Tonight... can you just tell me what she was like?" For a moment it might seem like she's asking about Samael, but then she clarifies, "Your Abstractum."

Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    "Not important for me. Not anymore." He makes a heavy, weary noise. "Used to be. Was a little angry for a while, that everything got taken over by the war. But... Well. It's all past. Decided to accept things for how they are. Everyone who didn't died eventually. And most who did too."

    There's a genuinely sorrowful sort of look he has, for a while. "Kept me humble. Better with words than I'll ever be. Made sure I could always see what I was doing wrong by showing it to me from the outside. Helped me calm down about losing what I wanted first." A sort of a plaintive, helpless shrug. "They're what you need, whatever that is. Not much more I can say than that she was what yours are for you."

Ariel (219) has posed:
Ariel nods slowly, then gives a small smile to Burden. "I think I've asked enough awkward questions for tonight. It's told me a lot more than I thought it might, too. Doctor... I can't tell if you're a good man right now, but I think if you remember her and you wanted to be, you could be a good man. Thank you for just talking to me."

After a little thought, she adds, "We'll figure out a way to stop this. If not me... then one of the others. We just need to try harder, because right now I don't think we're ready."

Laine (383) has posed:
    Laine gives Ariel a puzzled look at that, but she doesn't pursue it. To Burden, she finally speaks up... by sitting down, wearing a hat now as she's in girl form. "Ariel is good." The way she says that has a peculiar emphasis. "Others very strong. Will find the way. Burden want packmate again?"

Eleanor Lamb (40) has posed:
    Eleanor grips at her bowl a little harder, before sliding over to plant it near a sink or something. "If anyone can break the Cycle. It's us. I'm certain that we've got a shot. Especially with the people who are taking part now. All we need is time..."

    She leaves off at the end of that. That reason is probably obvious.

Abstractum.Net (347) has posed:
    There's a genuine sort of smile there. "I'm trying, Miss." He says. "For whatever it's worth. I'd like to be a good man by the end of all this. Or at least have tried." There's a bit of a helpless sort of shrug. "But I don't mind talkin'. Come around whenever you like. And I appreciate that you're tryin'. I know it sounds little condescending, what with how so many other people tries before, but..." The smile softens. "Well, I know you mean it, best you can."

    He shakes his head at Laine, briefly and quickly. "I wish she hadn't died. But I don't wish she was back. Wouldn't be right." He says, with a firm sort of voice that says it's an absolute sort of thing.

    And a quick nod to Eleanor. "I know. If anyone can do it, it's you kind folks. Last chance the Homeworld's got, after all. I'll put my trust in you to do it." He goes back to fussing with his fire, assuming things are mostly wrapped up.