neurotoxined | 001. Audio/Action for the labs within TR HQ

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001. Audio/Action for the labs within TR HQ

[AUDIO]

[And somewhere in Johto, there's someone in an incredibly good mood today; somebody's audio channel has been left open, and the result is a rather strong, clear soprano voice singing...uh, something rather repetitive and kind of Italian over the feed. She seems to be singing as she works on something or other; since she doesn't have the benefit of a bunch of ridiculously cute turrets providing background music, the song is a capella, and as such there are a lot of rather audible mechanical...noises happening in the background.

Weird. Grating noises. At least they sound like they're a good distance away from her...but then there's the occasional really loud wham in the background. That seems to be decidedly nearer.

...oh dear.

Whatever she's doing, however, the sudden banging sounds seem to be pretty much par for the course as far as she's concerned; her voice isn't breaking any, with the exception of the occasional waver that comes with what's probably her turning her head away from the general direction of the Gear to check whatever the hell is making all the noise.

GLaDOS is having quite a good day; as little as she's liked being human, she's actually rather fond of the fact that her voice now comes with decidedly less autotune.]

[ACTION]

[For those within the Rocket base, the incessant sounds in that area are implying that GLaDOS is having a grand old time generally doing what Aperture Science employees do best: breaking things horribly. For now, she seems to have been dedicating her time to recreating an incredibly crude Aerial Faith Plate; she hasn't gotten very far, having had to make the entire thing by hand, but she's staked out one of the larger rooms for herself and is currently testing out what she's managed, singing to herself all the while.

Of course, "what she's managed to do" has been create a means to terrify her Raticate, the aptly-dubbed Test Subject #1; in between the rounds of Cara Mia Addio, those with access to the labs can likely find a ridiculously tall, very pale woman with thinly-rimmed glasses and long white hair, standing around and trying to convince said Raticate to get on the plate - before the thing quite simply launches too early, smashing the flat surface of the plate itself violently against the floor before righting itself. Kinda.

...

It's a work in progress, okay.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[You'd love Aperture Science, then. As long as you can handle the deadly neurotoxin, anyway, which pretty much is one of the main components of air when GLaDOS is having a bad day.

But keep her happy and let her do her science and she'll stick to the sarcasm. Just for you.]

An engineer...

[She actually has to think about that one. It's not like she has a title, outside of her...name, technically - the scientists are the engineers, she's the core that runs the facility. But in the very basic sense of the term, as defined by the dictionary?]

Yes. Yes, I'm an engineer.

[... Hesitation? Gorthan can totally relate to it, however, since Earth's labeling of specialists is a little different from Evron's.]

You do not seem convinced. How long have you been here?

I am an engineer myself. A genetic engineer, to be exact, though I have worked with mechanics and electronics as well. My name is Gorthan.

Almost a month. My title was a bit...different in the lab I was working in before; I didn't have one area of expertise. I'm used to running the entire lab. By myself.

[Despite the heavy emphasis she's throwing around, she actually doesn't seem bitter about that any.]

But "engineer" works.

A large laboratory... that you ran without any help?

I guess I have much to learn from you, then. Even I need an entire team of technicians to assist me in my world of origin.

But tell me more about this project of yours, if you can. I am very curious. And... ah, may I know your name?

[Since he's given her his. And, by the way, he does sound very eager to know more. Given all the thinking he's been doing about the atrocities that a cruel mind is capable of, machines sound like a really comfortable field of investigation right now.]

I'm very good at multitasking. Let's put it that way. And the "project" is simple - Aerial Faith Plates are mechanisms calibrated to launch objects or testing subjects at a given trajectory, without loss of velocity even over great distances. Assuming, of course, that you aren't overwhelming its load-bearing capacity. Or otherwise breaking it horribly.

[She pauses for a moment; she isn't too sure exactly how much she wants to give out her real name, simply because no one really calls her by real name - the scientists who created her certainly weren't alive long enough to do so, and she had held enough of a reign of terror over Aperture to be referred to only as "she" or "her" (italics entirely necessary) among the other cores, and never addressed by name to her face.

There is something else that springs immediately to mind for potential use, but she can't say that she's thrilled about using that, either...]

As for my name, you can call me Caroline.

[She doesn't like how easily that slides out there.

She really doesn't like how easily that slides out there.]

Implying it's not... ah, never mind.

Three things are missing from your description, I believe. First, the power source for the device. Does it need to be connected to a network, or can you make it portable so it can be used anywhere?

Secondly, I hope you will excuse me, but the purpose of the invention appears to escape me. Is it merely transportation? A replacement for bridges, perhaps? Or is there something else?

Finally... how safe is it?

[He'd ask about the current condition of whatever unfortunate test subject she's been using, but, again, maybe he doesn't really want to know.]

Firstly, I see no reason why it couldn't be modified to be portable. The mechanisms are all self-contained. Although it would probably be best for it to be anchored to something...more testing will need to be done.

Secondly, it's a testing apparatus itself, used to investigate all sorts of things. Problem-solving skills. Manual dexterity. How many times a test subject will rocket themselves into a wall before they figure out a way to stop rocketing themselves into a wall. Take your pick.

And finally, it's safe...enough.

[...

Yeah, welcome to Aperture. We created a portaling device while trying to make a shower curtain, and the woman you're currently talking to was originally created to de-ice jets. Science!!!]

So the fact that its safety is lacking is precisely one of the invention's points. I see.

You don't care much about your test subjects at all, do you. What are you using right now?

[His voice sounds a little less polite and decidedly more resolute, to the point that his question sounds like he demands to know the answer. "Science!!!" indeed, but... you're not another psychopath, are you?]

[Oh, eyeroll. Don't tell her you're one of those bleeding hearts that thinks test subjects are people, too.]

I don't see why this is any of your business. At all.

I'll tell you why it is at least some of my business in a moment, Caroline.

Can you switch to Video right now?

[There's a bit of smile in his voice. Could he be making an experiment of his own here?]

[...uh-huh, suuuuuuuuuure.]

If you want to actually make a point, you'll tell me now.

One moment.

[Alright, time to see what happens if he sends something to Caroline on the Rockets-only frequency. A bit risky, certainly, but, given the absolutely splendid disregard for life that she has displayed so far...]

Hello, Caroline.

[...oh. Well. That explains a lot.]

Your rank, then?

[Well, now that that's established, there's no longer any reason to remain hidden, is there? Though Gorthan switches to Video mainly to silently invite Caroline to do the same thing. He is curious to see her.

The tall, muscular scientist with icy blue eyes and dreadlocks is presently in a dimly lit room with wooden walls. A couple traditional Japanese ornaments can be seen in the background - a simple flower arrangement and a scroll hung on the wall.

Even though the light is so poor, there's a benevolent glint in his eyes and an evident, slightly amused smile on his face.

After all, he realizes, even if the new girl is crazy, he really is in no position to judge her.]

Ah... how remarkable. You seem to be the only one I have met here who cares about rank at all.

Technically, I am a Grunt, like most others here. But most of my work is done for the science division. And thanks to my experience and authority in my home world, I can get away with ordering my theoretical peers around once in a while. But worry not - I will not attempt it with you.

[Well. She supposes she can follow suit, then.

The 'Gear switches modes easily - at the very least, she seems to know what she's doing, unlike a good amount of the new arrivals who have to fiddle with the device for practically forever to figure out how to do something basic like turn the thing on without breaking it.

She's very tall and rather pale, leaning forward with her forearms braced against the counter while she talks into the gear; her hair is white and very long, though it's swept back well out of her face, amber eyes glinting behind thin, wire-rimmed glasses.]

Smart of you, I think. Very smart of you. That wouldn't set a very nice working environment.

[Gorthan smiles, pleased to see that his invitation was accepted, after all. And he does not regret making that invitation in the first place at all - she is truly a remarkable being. He tilts his head to the side.]

Are you that dangerous?

[His tone isn't defiant at all, actually - he merely wants to know.]

[She smiles a bit at that; the expression is more mischievous than cruel, but the look in her eyes is...a bit of an odd one.]

That depends on how well we get along. The last group of scientists I worked with found me a bit...difficult to get along with. A few very fundamental differences here and there.

And what did you do about that?

[Sadly, he believes he knows where this is going. In spite of that, his tone remains oddly calm and conversational, his smile still present.]

They started finding me a lot harder to get along with. But then, I guess it would be a lot harder to get along with someone who insists on flooding the Enrichment Center with deadly neurotoxin.

They were all terrible people, anyway.

[Her expression doesn't really flicker, remaining calm through that...explanation, if it could be called that; the last part is stated very bluntly. Simply. A fact, not an opinion. They were all terrible people.]

[Gorthan nods gravely, closing his eyes for a moment. But he doesn't judge. Instead, what he does is lean a little closer to the Gear, his eyes now very open and inquisitive.]

Can I ask why? What, exactly, had they done to you?

[She doesn't answer for a long period of time, a rather openly confused expression crossing her features.]

They were all terrible people. There's no questioning why.

[And again, she seems more confused than irritated when she says it, because she means that rather literally - no one ever really questions her logic on these sorts of things. Presumably because there's no one alive that will question her - the test subject she's been working with is a mute and the cores know better than to doubt her judgement. If she says that someone is terrible, then that someone is terrible and they should feel terrible. End of story.]

[Gorthan nods firmly. He isn't quite sure what he just did, but he will smile in an attempt to reassure her.]

I understand.

The way you were singing, just a moment ago... it is not something you could have done with them around, is it?

There was no one stopping me, if that's what you're getting at. I guess I could have if I felt like it.

[And that isn't a lie at all, as there quite literally was no one stopping her - she kind of went berserk upon full activation, so! She's back to that easy smile again.]

Ah, but you didn't - so the end result is really the same, isn't it?

Perhaps there are people whose very presence in our lives keeps our souls from becoming free and expressing themselves as they should. What do you think?

[And again, he seems very relaxed. Though there's an expectant glint in his eyes - he can't wait to see how she deals with slightly more philosophical subjects.]

[...she just kind of stares for a moment at that, her brow furrowing quite a bit; when she does reply, her tone is suddenly heavy, incredibly blunt - the uneven lightness it usually carries is gone.]

Of course there are. There's no "perhaps." No "maybe." There are always people who won't listen. The choice that we have is whether we let them keep us down, or whether we get mad.

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