The Time for Talk is Now [Open Log]

[pride_outbreak]

WHO: Everyone except the bots.
WHERE: Classroom/Private
WHEN: Before the missions to the surface take place
WHAT: Saya briefs the rest of the vault dwellers on her findings from the terminals and opens discussions.
WARNINGS: Violence, experimentation, dark themes +

Saya took Yun's advice and opted not to openly address this subject on the comms. Instead, she went to every person's bunk and left a short, semi-coded message that was vague enough for them to get the hint and meet at the noted time and place when the moment came. She wasn't taking any chances and wanted to share her discoveries before any missions set out so that everyone had a better idea of the place's history and what they may be running into.

Taking her place at the front of the classroom, Saya wrote some things on the board and sat, legs crossed, on the desk as she waited for people to show up. She had a set time on when she'd start, whether everyone showed up or not was up to them. With each person that entered, she offer a small greeting and just ask them to wait and sit on one of the chairs available. Once the time came to be, she'd start, clearing her throat.

"So, as you may know I've been fixing and hacking the terminals that became available to us after the power was restored and so far I have to admit that the findings were not the most pleasant. But, under advice from someone I trust, I have withheld from posting it in the network for the time being and instead will be going over the discoveries here and now. Once we are sure that it's safe, I'll unload the data into the public network for all to have access to. If you truly need copies of the information, I can do a physical copy and give it to you as long as you make sure it's not found. With that said, this will be a lot of information so please refrain from asking any questions until the end of the briefing. I won't stop to answer them if that's any incentive not to interrupt me, and will keep on debriefing. So, unless you have to go to the restroom prior to this, I will begin."

Taking a moment to read the room, Saya pulled out her hefty pile of notes and began.

"I already debriefed previously on the data found on Testing Terminal 1. So I will continue from there and this will be the data found on Testing Terminal 2."

"Non-corrupted entry:
Forced evolutionary virus strain c366-43a marked for triage. No improvement in cognition over previous attempts. Potential use for future military application once method of imprinting to allied forces determined. Such an undertaking relatively low priority, but submitted to Overseer for consideration.

We must double our efforts on remaining strains. While vault remains sealed, potential contamination of subject by outside radiation remains possible. Time is of the essence.

Recovered/Repaired entry:
Stage one of project Rescan has been registered as a success. Entire scientific team to submit to brains scan protocol ‘as soon as convenient.’ There must be a way to slow it down. This cannot be the solution to preserve our humanity."

Saya took a moment to look around the room before continuing.

"This is the data for Testing Terminal 3."

"Non-corrupted entry:
Subject 004-02. Modified FEV injection appears promising. In contrast to previous attempts, subject has maintained ambulation and some coherence two weeks following exposure. Preliminary data support my previous theory this mutant strain may benefit from continued radiation exposure following acclimation to host. I have requested permission for maintained high radiation levels in testing chamber. Louis remains unconvinced cognition will survive such measures, but I'm certain the overseer will understand the merit of this modified protocol. As he so often likes to say, humanity depends on us.

Recovered/Repaired entries:
1-
Personal Entry. Underwent my brain scan today. The processes appears relatively harmless, despite concerns from other members of the research team. More a personality imprint than anything else. I don’t see it replacing our research as a viable alternative anytime soon. Pretty sure the fact the Overseer’s kid is on that team is why it’s getting such a push. Not that I’m saying that out loud.

And not that that fact matters to a certain co-worker. He refused to undergo the scan, of course. He’s been placed under house arrest until he goes. Dramatic guy, that one. The Overseer is more upset about the chain of command not being respected than any actual damage to the project. But try talking that into his thick head. For a genius, he’s an idiot sometimes. He’s going to sink our projects on his own with these kinds of stunts.

Going to give him a med-X and drag him to the scan room myself if he doesn’t get over it by the end of the week.
2- Critical notes placed with Overseer. Testing chamber doors sealed. My god, how did it go down hill so fast. I don’t even know how to use a gun."

Without skipping a beat, Saya paused, looked around and continued.

"These next entries are from both the female and male dorm terminals." 

"Female dorm non-corrupted entry:
One year. That’s the count down. Anyone can survive a year, right? Right. A year underground with no sun. No sky. No trees. Walls closing in.

It’s only a year. Then Vault-Tec will let us know where we can go, what places survived. They couldn’t have blown up the whole world. Some bombs must have been hit before they could launch and wreck everything. Somewhere must be there. Australia. Or too close to China? Somewhere in Africa. Somewhere hot and sunny. People sailed before atomic power. We could do it again.

Just one year.

Recovered entry:
There haven’t been any bodies. That’s weird, right? Before the war, you would see the body at the funeral. Get to say goodbye or spit in their face one more time. But here it’s just an urn of ashes, same size, color, and shape for everyone. To stop the infection spreading, the doctors say. But not a single body? Not even to look at through a window before they burn it? No one gets to say goodbye. Not while the person is sick, not when they’re dead. They’re just gone one day. Can't even be sure it's not just dust in the urn.

It’s weird. My stomach hurts thinking about it.

God, don’t let me be sick, too.

Male dorm entries were all damaged, so it took some time to piece together, but these are the recovered ones:
It’s happening tonight. We can’t live this way anymore. Too many disappearances, too many unanswered questions. That creature in the hall. I don’t care what they say, that was no fucking disease. No skin condition. That thing wasn’t human. And nothing from Vault-Tec. No long awaited signal we can leave.

There’s still more of us than them. We just need to take the Overseer office. They scientists can hide in their precious pod room all they like, we’ll get them later.
There’s no choice.

Well fuck."
After the second entry, Saya sighed and looked over the crowd. She was pretty sure 'well fuck' was pretty much what was on a lot of people's minds at this point.

"These terminals also had some info on dorm etiquette which I fail to believe people who haven't already been following them would care to listen to. There was also an interesting recipe for something called 'Mocka-Cola' that is apparently both refreshing and useful." she was still on the fence about this one but all information was good information she supposed.

"The final terminal I've been able to access was the maintenance terminal. This one was a bit trickier as I had to wait till it was free and safe to access, but aside from maintenance logs and a nicely detailed layout of the water and air system's repairs, which I have made small manuals of in case we need to repair them ourselves" she pats the side were a smaller stack of rough papers was at which contained pretty detailed schematics she drew up of what information she gathered on these two systems, "there was only one corrupted entry that I could manage to save and was rather important."

"Final corrupted entry:
Four yards of lead and steel between me and success. Father won’t open the door for me. Almost three years since the bombs fell, no word from Vault-Tec, and he still won’t open the damn door. Breach of protocol. Yes, unsealing the Vault will let in radiation, an unknown amount, but those whackos over in project FEV are playing with the stuff like it’s glitter at a bachelorette party anyway. If Rescan is going to be anything more than a back-up drive we need a radio tower. To build a tower we need to get outside. It’s not that damn hard.

But he won’t let me out, even disabled the pip-boy manual override to open the door so I can’t get out without him. Figured that out when he caught me trying to do just that. Got slapped with a week in maintenance as punishment, told me I’m lucky not to be shot for mutiny. Now the project’s even further behind. Great job, dad. Father of the year award winner yet again.

At least everything else is in place. Theoretically. We just need that tower to test it."

"This last entry is actually pretty relevant to my team, should I even gather the volunteers needed. I've been tasked with verifying if this tower is up and active... So the Captains knows about it and has asked me to investigate it..."

With that said, Saya takes a breather and looks sternly over the group. "Floor is now open... I'm sure this is a lot to take in so let's not do any rash decisions on a whim and think about what this all entails for us here and now and for the foreseeable future."

Comments

Open interactions/discussions between the group

[pride_outbreak]

[makeadragonwannaretire]

Azula did not look well.

Entering this discussion she had the appearance of someone not getting enough sleep. Irritated and stiff but interested in Saya’s findings.

The more she listened though the shift from irritation to anger was clear.

“I suppose it goes without saying at this point, but I think you were right to keep this between us. Clearly our so-called saviors at Vault-Tec cannot be trusted.”

[wildguardian]

"Never trust the faceless overlords!" Yunlan exclaimed, spreading his hands wide. She didn't look so good. Sleep-deprived? Stressed?

Well, it didn't have to be either/or. He was sure as hell two for two.

"We can assume Simmons knows all of this -- sounds like the real dirty details are all tucked away in the computer systems in his office. And I doubt they're as corrupted as the stuff that failed to get wiped off the ones out here."

[makeadragonwannaretire]

"I miss being one of the overlords." Azula sighed half joking and try to ignore Yunlan studying her. Of the people she'd spoken with so far he seemed to be smarter then he let on, but also focused on the people more then the problem.

Empathy, something she still hadn't quite come around to understanding. But some people found it useful didn't they?

"So if he wasn't in the room, would we be able to get that information off his computer? Would he be able to tell if we accessed it?"

An honest question, she's still a novice with computers.

[wildguardian]

"He might be able to. Lots of systems tell you when something's been accessed." He shook his head, shooting her a smirk. "And I'm lucky I was never one of the overlords. Keeps me honest. How are you feeling, Azula?"

[makeadragonwannaretire]

"Great. Lovely." She sighed and glared accusingly at the Pip-Boy on her arm. Just how much was it hiding from her.

She decided to try brushing off his question "Yes I'm sure we should all fear the inevitable rise of the cruel and vicious warlord Zhao Yun Lan. You might decree we all work together or mandate music night around the singing box in the recreation room."

[wildguardian]

"So I'm seeing a lot of information that tracks with the kind of shit we've already seen, and a couple bits of new info." He realized, with a start, that he was chewing on the ragged edge of his thumbnail, and pulled it away from his mouth. What he wouldn't give for a pack of lollipops. Or a pack of fucking cigarettes. Would they give him cancer any faster than living one floor above a nuclear reactor? Probably not!

"One, brain scans of all the scientists and high-ranking types? I hate to say it, but that's putting some evidence in the corner of the theory about our memories not being all the way right.

"Two, those dumbshits really were playing around with diseases. Those of us who've gone toe to toe with the living subjects might want to keep an eye on ourselves for symptoms. Doesn't sound like it was catching so much as it got injected, but you know what they say about safe and sorry. How about we splash a couple gallons of bleach all over those rooms before anyone goes in 'em next?

"And three... there's a manual override on the front door if we can just get it enabled again." He cast Saya a razored grin. "I'm not keen on this Rescan project, considering how few of those scientists sound like people I want to hang with, but I'd love to know what that radio tower's picking up these days too. Did Simmons give you any directions? Distances? Hell, a map?"

[pride_outbreak]

Saya nodded at each of Yun's statements and once he got to the end, she looked down a bit in thought.

"Actually... yeah..." She paused for a few moments before looking up to the team. "While trying to get more information and requesting access from the Overseer terminal, I suppose Simmons felt they could trust the techie. He made me privvy to extra information about the radio tower and asked me to lead my team to investigate it..."

Which she felt some of the other dwellers would not be too keen on following her.

[wildguardian]

"Did he." Yunlan's frown darkened into a scowl. "It sounds like it's been a long, long time since any of this shit happened, and no communication from Vault-Tec in all that time... so odds are there's no masterminds waiting on the radio waves for us to check in. But, just to be safe, you might want to do some listening before you let Simmons know if it's in working order.

"What information did he give you?"

[pride_outbreak]

"I was going to be thorough investigating, I don't half ass my missions. Though I would have gone over the debrief with you guys before coming back into the vault which is why I wanted to suggest we all meet back up at the entrance before coming in so we can tell each other what we found..." She pauses and frowns. "Assuming we all survive."

"As for what he gave me. Seems he's pretty sure there might be survivors or something else up there. He repeated to not engage with anyone at all and to just observe... He also gave me the coordinates to where he believes the tower is set up."

[wildguardian]

"Not a bad idea," he agreed. "If we're all out at the same time, that is. Who's going with you? And how good are they at stealth?"

Survivors. After this long? He didn't know how much he believed that, but it was a hell of a thought.

Questions directed at the group

[pride_outbreak]

[cicadashell]

Jiro showed up a little late, because vague and coded messages are a really bad idea for someone who isn't tech-savvy or very intelligent. The information all supports the running theory that the robots, at least Simmons, are the problem, and that the military had been conducting experiments on people, possibly all of them. He has one question for the group, because it's now making him think in a different direction.

"I went to see Charlotte before, and she mentioned having been against something on the grounds of morality. I thought that was a weird thing to program into a robot, but this might have cleared it up. Anyone else think project Rescan was transferring people's brain wave patterns to robot bodies?"

[justoutrunyou]

“I mean...what are the odds one of the only names listen in these computers is the same name as our robo-cook?”

But Louis? He couldn’t be lying about who he was could he? Sandy had spent enough time with him she had started to trust him.

“And that other guy, the one who didn’t want a scan. Might explain why Nick doesn’t like to do his job.”

It was a reach but Sandy didn’t want to consider the other option, that someone in this room might be a robot.

[cicadashell]

"If that's what happened, we might be able to get Louis and the others to turn against Simmons."

Well, someone else could. Someone who the robots like.

[justoutrunyou]

"Unless they wanted to be robots...then they might just team up."

Suddenly Sandy was feeling sick to her stomach, pinching at her arm and finding some amount of comfort in the pain. Robots wouldn't hurt from that right? Robots wouldn't have scars on their shoulder from mole rat attacks right?

[wildguardian]

"Robot bodies? Sure, it's possible. I was thinking a bunch of people who don't flinch at the kind of shit they were doing to the poor bastards who weren't in the know wouldn't flinch at transferring those brain wave patterns to spare human bodies," Yunlan commented. "But a robot could be programmed with moral precepts! Think Asimov, right? You'd want some kind of rules in a robot doctor.

"She didn't happen to say what she was against, did she?"

[cicadashell]

"The fuck is an Asimov?"

He does not read.

"I was thinking robot bodies because there was that thing about 'preserving humanity' and whoever left that entry seemed kind of appalled at what it was. I think the human... bodies... were failing."

He shrugs; robots make more sense to him than brainwave swaps between humans.

"Charlotte didn't want to give me corrosive or incendiary chemicals to make explosives with."

[wildguardian]

"Guy who wrote robot stories." He has a weakness for adventure. "And you might be right about the bodies: but all that shit about preserving cognition sounds to me like they could get the bodies to keep going but couldn't keep the brains from turning to mush. Who knows? Maybe that's what they were trying to save brain scans for. Stick 'em in the radiation-resistant immortal mutant bodies after you make 'em...."

Immortal might be a stretch, but two of them had survived in those sealed-up labs without food or water for... how long?

Centuries, maybe.

Questions directed at Saya

[pride_outbreak]

Saya's Team and or Volunteers for her mission or anyone who wants to talk to her about it.

[pride_outbreak]

Saya stayed behind, hoping that she'd get serious volunteers after that debriefing.

[makeadragonwannaretire]

"You've done excellent work already Saya. We'd still be in the dark without your help. Literally and figuratively."

Azula lingered after the meeting, taking some time to shuffle the desks around. She was turning this place into a makeshift training room but it was still a functional meeting space.

"As such I can't have you going out there into danger by yourself. I'll be escorting you on your mission."

That wasn't a request, more like stating a fact that had already been decided.

[pride_outbreak]

"Oh?"

Saya looked at Azula curiously and raised a brow, "Honestly, I would have thought you would have been chosen for one of the lead positions considering what I've gathered from your background. But, to be honest, I wouldn't mind having someone I trust in the group."

[makeadragonwannaretire]

"Yes well, we can't blame him for making a poor choice when he hasn't met me yet. It may speak more that he...or possibly they, don't have information on all of us. Who we are and what we can do."

If they could find that data, find out who was still in the pods perhaps they could take control of the process more easily.

"I'll follow your lead of course. You were chosen for a reason and I think you'll do a fine job so long as you stay focused and careful."

[pride_outbreak]

"Hm, this is true. If they truly knew who we were, they would have made different choices..." Unless they were playing them all. But no point in thinking that for the time being.

"Good... Because our mission is a bit different than the rest and may prove more dangerous."