In Which A Programmer Discovers the Sensorium [Open]

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

He'd heard about the Sensorium - places where anything could be created - but hadn't really believed their capabilities until he'd been inside it.

Kira first tried to create a simple white room, and was surprised when the ship seemed to respond to his words, forming, indeed, a white room around him. After that, he'd populated it with little objects and mementos, starting small, until he'd recreated his room on the Archangel.

Where to go after this? The possibilities were endless, and so he couldn't really resist trying to see how far he could take it. So, he requested a different style of interface: A computer pad through which he could describe the area he had in mind. Kira's fingers flew over the keyboard, and before long, the white room had become a beautiful, idyllic garden in front of a large manor house, complete with glass-covered gazebo.

Beyond that, though, the rest of the world began to take shape - a balcony overlooking large body of water, in the center of which was a massive pillar that stretched high into the sky... where it disappeared from view. In fact, though the walls did an excellent job at recreating the illusion of a blue sky, the entire place was contained as part of a space colony - or, as known in his world, a PLANT.

It was Lacus' manor garden, where he'd awoken after the destruction of his Strike. He'd only spent a brief amount of time here as he recuperated, but it was still... relaxing. It felt peaceful.

Kira sat on one of the garden benches, looking up at the sky, and feeling the breeze across his face. None of it was real; it was just a simulation that he'd programmed. But how could he ever tell the difference?

(ooc: Open, open, open! Come bug and/or meet Kira :D

Also, this is a truly open log. Feel free to thread hop or interject if only to meet new people 8D)

Comments

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

Lafiel flashes a look at Kira of shared embarrassment. We have a cultural nudity taboo.


"A flight model? Mister Yamato, I have a question: What kind of control inputs can it accept?" A little idea's forming in her brain. Unconsciously she fingers the diamond shaped 'earrings' she's wearing.

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

Kira pointedly looks away in the opposite direction as soon as a flash of black and silver enters his peripheral vision. "The skirt also has more thrusters, and some extra weaponry." It felt awkward to be explaining the Strike to these relative strangers. "Mines aren't much of a problem since it fights mostly in air or in space, and... the color comes from the Phase Shift armor, which makes it harder to damage."

He looked more in Lafiel's direction, though still not looking near Meluly. "Control inputs? Um... well, it has a standard Mobile Suit cockpit, I guess. There are pedals, and control handles, and..." he trails off, not sure how to explain it.

[aworldnevermade.livejournal.com]

Luly rolls her eyes as her hands go up to wring a little water from her hair. She's busy enough with the 'silly humans' train of thought that it takes her a few moments to process what Kira's just said.

Then the 'in space' hits her, and her face runs through a full set of expressions ranging from 'that's ridiculous' to 'so what's the real story' to 'that's ridiculous' to 'mecha in space?!?' to 'that's ridiculous' to 'so what's the real story'. Since he's not looking, though, Kira misses this display.

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

Lafiel blinks. Did...did her face just do a somersault? She seemed to have gone through a series of revelations.

She looks back up at the Gundam. "Is there a data input that can be connected to the control system?"

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

Yep. Kira missed that, all right. "Um... I don't think I know what that is, so... I'm afraid there probably isn't."

Sorry, Lafiel. If you wanted to learn you'd have to do it the old-fashioned way.

[aworldnevermade.livejournal.com]

"Why do you even need a humaniform machine in space?" Luly finally manages to sputter out.

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

"Well there's no reason why it couldn't be. Without large gravity wells, it can be any shape the designer wishes." Lafiel says, hand on hip.

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

Kira blinked. "Ah... it's called AMBAC - the principle that by using limbs to shift its center of mass, it can achieve near-thrusterless maneuverability in combat." He shrugged. "I don't know why they designed it just like this other than that, though."

[aworldnevermade.livejournal.com]

Luly tries to work that around in her head for a few minutes—and gives up. "Your universe must work a lot differently than mine," she says with a 'hnph'. "Are you a pilot?"

She's still circling the machine, mostly focused on it. Kira may have some odd work cut out for him to avoid getting any looks.

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

It's okay, Meluly. He's a Coordinator with abnormal spatial awareness. He'll be just fine for the moment, though it does require a bit of an effort. "...I used to be," Kira acknowledged with a nod.

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

I think I would like to fly against one of these machines in a simulation...

"Where you demoted?" Lafiel asks, fondly remembering her days as a pilot trainee, the frustration of wanting a Rank Tiara with wings, the lack of the burden of command.

[aworldnevermade.livejournal.com]

Luly sits on the grass, knees pulled up to her chest, looking up at the giant robot, and lets out a sigh before letting herself flop backwards. "I wish Colo was here," she says quietly. "I feel so pointless without'm around..."

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

Kira looks over at Lafiel, the barest hints of surprise registering on his face. "Demoted? ...no, the war ended. I didn't need to pilot anymore."

"You were a pilot too, then?" He asks, his voice in the direction of Meluly even if his gaze is not.

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

"Your military...fires people during peacetime?" The idea of a military that's not constantly expanding is new to her. The Abh star forces are constantly recieving a flow of new recruits, Abh nobles serving their required terms, subjects gaining citizenship, and those in it for the pay and benefits.

"As was I, before I entered Officer's School."

[aworldnevermade.livejournal.com]

"Am a pilot," Luly says, folding her arms over her chest. "Colopatiron—" —her accent gives a funny tinge to the name— "—he's my Engel, my mech. A little shorter than your guy there. He's somewhere here..." —she gestures vaguely— "...but the ship won't let me get to him."

Her tone is possessive, maybe even a little disturbingly so, and rather unhappy about the situation.

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

Kira nodded. "I've... heard that they have bigger equipment here. That we might have to use it." He looked away, his gaze lowering a bit as he turned to Lafiel. "I wasn't fired... I was a civilian to begin with."

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

"They let a civilian pilot a war machine that large and powerful?" Very undisciplined, Gundam peeps. "Mister Yamato I would like some time to test both the capabilities of our respective worlds' technology and those of the sensorium by flying a mock dogfight with that machine some time." She smiles, already considering what she will pilot.

Yamato, Yamato...There's something about that name...

[aworldnevermade.livejournal.com]

"That'd be interesting to watch," Luly says, rolling over onto her stomach on the grass, head propping up in her hands. "You ever do anything on the ground, I might be interested... but I don't think this place could really do a good copy of Colo." She's speaking like somebody would refer to a person very important to them, not just a war machine.

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

Kira shook his head. "I wrote a good part of the OS... I was qualified to pilot it," he says quietly, simply - not a boast, just a fact. He was looking up at the Strike again, remembering the last time he'd seen it...

...and then he looked over at Lafiel, momentarily startled. "A ... sparring session?" The thought hadn't occurred to him, to be honest - he'd considered using it as a simulator, but to simulate something like that...? The confusion left his face, though, and though there was the barest hint of a frown on his face, he nodded. "...maybe we'll need to. To keep our skills up..."

Kira paused. "...but if we did, I'd use the Freedom, not the Strike."

Meluly's comment seemed to puzzle him, though. "I think this place can copy anything as long as you give it accurate parameters. That's... what it seems like, anyway."

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

Lafiel, however, is still smiling. She's been nothing but bored. "My intent is as much to test the paremeters of the sensorium as to test you. I think..."

And then it hits her. She knew the name Yamato...It was from oral tradition. History.


What timing, to find a Japanese person here. The mother culture...The one that created her own people as slaves. They had turned on them and slaughtered them and now...Every Abh carried that guilt on their shoulders, even thousands of years later.

What color there was drained from her face. "I...I have to go..." She said in a small voice.

[aworldnevermade.livejournal.com]

"Colo isn't like other mecha," Luly says in Kira's direction. "Engels are—special. Really special... adaptive systems are part of that, there's stuff that this place just wouldn't be able to get out of a stock model..." She's being obviously evasive about something.

And then Lafiel speaks up like that. "Hey... what's up with you?" Luly says toward her, shifting to more of a half-kneeling position.

[kirasaves.livejournal.com]

Kira was about to answer Meluly when he noticed Lafiel's obvious distress (not that it was difficult to pick up). "...is... everything ok?"

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

Somehow he knows something is strange...I have to leave before I look any more suspicious.

"Yes i'm fine I just...remembered I have to do something important." She turns quickly, a small spray from her still wet hair winging out behind her.

[aworldnevermade.livejournal.com]

"Uh... oy, wait!" Luly says. "What's gotten into you?" Luly stands, moving quickly towards Lafiel.

[not-prncss-tldr.livejournal.com]

As soon as she's out of what she believes is Kira's earshot she whirls. "I...It's nothing!" She stumbles and snaps out. Clearly it's something though and she's just doing a horrible job of covering it up.