Open Misfire Log!

[microbrobotics]

WHO: Hiro + anyone with a comm!
WHERE: Your comm, courtesy of data-jumping and the server misfire event
WHEN: October 3rd
WHAT: Hiro tries to jump back into his own comm and misses. Badly. Repeatedly. Shenanigans ensue.
WARNINGS: Probably none!

[ The good thing about being able to data-jump is that it makes the commute into De Chima ridiculously easy. Set up two beacons - one in his comm, the other at his work terminal - and just follow that path back and forth. He doesn't even have to think and he's there.

Unfortunately, those beacons are just as dependent on the server update as the rest of the network ... and when the misfires start happening, Hiro's beacons get mixed up too. What should be a big bright arrow pointing to his comm is just complete garbage ... meaning he's going to end up in a whole lot of comms that he shouldn't be before he finally makes his way home.

For those getting the misfire, there's a only a quick ping, like receiving a message, before a very confused teenager's face appears on the viewscreen. He does, at least, keep from going through any data, but that means he has to look out at the surroundings to try and figure out where he is. Which means staring up at whoever's comm he's in now. ]

Seriously? Not again.

Comments

evening;

[amadaman]

[Despite all the distraction provided by the confusion and subsequent excitement from the misfired messages, Ken's not quite himself today. His conversations are kept light and casual, avoiding too-deep conversations and avoiding contact with people in general for the most part. He stays in his room all the way to evening, much like he had, in fact, since October started. It was just not an enjoyable time of the year for Ken, or any of SEES.

He's lying in his room when his comm pings, yet again. It's not so late in the day but it's still dark in here, with the curtains shut and lights turned off... though it isn't complete darkness Ken's plunged himself in. In fact, there are millions of dots of light scattered across the ceiling visible from Hiro's position in the comm, turning the room into a little cut-out of the universe. The projector itself is on the floor, not visible from where the comm is lying on the desk.

But Ken's already moving, getting up from his bed upon hearing Hiro's voice. There's only about five or ten seconds of seeing the bedroom-turned-planetarium before an arm reaches over and clicks on the desk lamp, breaking the illusion, and Ken peers down at the screen of his phone.]

Hiro?

[microbrobotics]

[ Oh. That's lovely. Hiro doesn't even say anything past his initial annoyed comment when he sees the ceiling. From the comm it's extra gorgeous, like he's somehow jumped into a comm that's in space. Alas, not actually the case.

He jolts a bit as the illusion breaks and he finds himself staring up at Ken's face instead. The differences between a normal chat and Hiro actually being in the phone are probably already apparent to Ken: Hiro being stuck in front of whatever Ken has pulled up, a complete absence of natural lighting on his face, etc. ]

Did I wake you up?

[amadaman]

[Ken remembers what that looks like from when Hiro was kept in his comm, so he's not confused for long. And texts have been going to the wrong people all day, too, so he figures it out quickly enough and sits down at his desk, propping his phone up so he can see Hiro better. He turns the lamp back off, too, and they're back in the little starry space.]

No, I wasn't asleep. Did you send yourself to the wrong place?

[Not sleeping isn't a lie, at least. He hasn't seen Hiro in a few days, and rest hasn't come easily in those few days. He yawns, and he sighs, and there are bags forming under his eyes.] You sound like it's not the first time you ended up somewhere unintended.

[microbrobotics]

[ Ah. That's better. He gets right up to the edge of the viewscreen, leaning against it so that he looks (and feels) almost like he's leaning out a window. It's a nice illusion. ]

It's been happening all day. I got home for a while, but then I forgot and tried to take a shortcut back to work ...

[ And here he is. He's just desperately grateful he didn't end up in, say, Crane's. He glances up at the other boy ... ]

You okay?

[amadaman]

Oh. Well, it's good that you ended up somewhere safe.

[Ken can think of quite a few people he'd hate to end up with.]

And, mm, yeah, I'm okay. Tired, a little... but it's not bad, all things considered.

[microbrobotics]

Yeah, me too.

[ He opens his mouth to mention the conversation he'd had with Crane ... and decides against it for now. He'll get back to it later. He feels better worrying about someone else for a change. ]

... Just tired? No nightmares or anything?

[amadaman]

[Ken shakes his head, and he reaches for the screen. Careful not to tap Hiro's face with his finger, he closes the app he had open -- his messages, making sure to cancel this one so Hiro can't see who it was he was trying to write to -- and opens up the calendar. Today is still the third, but it's the fourth he clicks to.]

Not nightmares. But... I might prefer those, over this.

[microbrobotics]

[ He wouldn't feel any touchscreen taps directly, but he still appreciates the gesture. He does, however, swivel to look at the calendar. Why's Ken pulling that up...? ]

Did something happen? ... Is something going to happen?

[ That second thought is alarming - if Ken is planning something drastic, he needs to get in the way. ]

[amadaman]

Haha. Don't jinx it.

[Ken laughs but it's humorless. He doesn't state anything directly, but Hiro, who once shared that memory with Shinjiro, might be able to put it together.]

My mom died during the Dark Hour of October fourth when I was nine.

[microbrobotics]

[ The wheels are turning ... he's quiet for a long moment as he puts pieces together. ]

Isn't that - when Shinjiro died, wasn't that October too--?

[ And there'd been a full moon in the sky? He quietly runs a background process to go look up full moon dates for the past ten years. ]

[amadaman]

October 4, 2009, yeah.

[Ken leans back in his chair, and while he certainly doesn't sound happy, there's no bitterness in his voice as he explains.]

I remember you said you saw his memory... that night, that alleyway was where my mom died two years before, and I called him out there. I'm sure he's aware of it, too. [he sighs] I don't know how he spent the October before I got here, but with both of us here... there's no way to ignore it.

[microbrobotics]

[ Ah. No need for the search, then. He dismisses the process quietly just looks up at Ken. ]

... What are you going to do?

[amadaman]

[Ken's staring at the sky on his ceiling. It's nice; it's impossible to see so many from Nonah or Iwatodai, and he misses that Texan desert for its sights.]

... I don't know. I wasn't planning to see another October again, remember?

[microbrobotics]

[ Right. All of that. Hiro suppresses a shudder ... and considers hopping out, even if he might pass out on impact. Ken shouldn't be alone for this. ]

I remember. I just ... I mean, are you going to talk to Shinjiro?

[amadaman]

Mm. I dunno. He might... he probably doesn't want to see me. We're better, now, but it's still...

[microbrobotics]

Yeah. Stuff still happened.

Could you ask him if he wants to talk?

[amadaman]

He won't say no.

He came to that alleyway knowing who I was. He probably knew what I wanted to do, too.

[microbrobotics]

... You won't do that again, right?

[amadaman]

[Ken's reaction is as sudden as receiving an electric shock]

Of course not!

[microbrobotics]

Okay, okay! I just - wanted to make sure I wasn't assuming the wrong thing.

[ He quiets again for a moment. ]

And I mean, if you wanted to talk to him but needed someone there ... I could always hitch a ride.

[amadaman]

[Ken's frowning. He isn't mad at Hiro for wanting to make sure, and he knows that it's a legitimate question to ask. But he's still frowning, and he shakes his head yet again.]

It has to be me, alone, if I'm going to do it.

[microbrobotics]

[ That's legitimate too. He just wants Ken to have the option if he wants it. ]

Yeah, totally. I get it. Just ... just be safe, both of you.

[amadaman]

Nothing is happening to Aragaki-san. I won't let it. He's suffered enough.

... Do you want me to plug the phone in, by the way? It's running low on battery and I don't want you to get stuck, unless you're not planning on staying.

[microbrobotics]

Don't let anything happen to you either. You've been through too much too.

[ That battery comment makes him jolt up a little straighter though. After jumping into a bricked comm, the thought of being stuck in a dead one is legitimately terrifying. ]

Oh god, please plug in. If the battery dies that is not gonna be fun for me.

[amadaman]

[Ken nods, and he's already moving before Hiro even finishes talking. There's a "wah" and a thud when he trips on his backpack in the dark, but he's soon back with the charger and wastes no more time in plugging the phone in. No dying comms tonight.]

... He still doesn't look me in the eyes, Aragaki-san. I mean, I don't blame him. But he must, still. Just like how I still... blame myself for his death.