nexus_crossings | Language LOL: Translator Malfunction

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Language LOL: Translator Malfunction

You know what's cool? Chatting with your pals. Reading the Internet. Navigating the roads because you can understand the Gods-damned street signs. You know what's not cool? Not being able to do any of that. By that metric, one might describe today in the Nexus decidedly uncool.

It's utterly without warning that the multiversal hub goes from automatic to manual translation. Shop signs, radio and television broadcasts, conversations on the streets between vendors and friends and businesspeople are suddenly a jarring cacophony of dissonant languages. Then there's the silence. Then there's the shouting. Turns out people get pissed off when nobody understands them!

Momentary chaos dies down as the average people of the Nexus come to grips with their new situation. Shopkeepers wait outside their stores and stands with expectant expressions, impatiently waiting for the translator to pull itself together and start working again.

Except...

It sort of doesn't.

No, it super doesn't.

Citizens of the Nexus, it would appear you're going to have to adjust...

((The temporary LANGUAGE LOL is now underway! It's freeform fun until you're done and participation is completely optional. Don't feel like this event should stop you from making threads which are unaffected by the LOL in the mean time. If you want your Language LOL'd character to interact with a non-LOL thread, please ask the OP if they want to play that dynamic first. For the OOC and organization post, GO HERE. ))

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"Don't stare at him," Adia warns softly. She means Bucky, of course, although it's probably not a good idea to stare at Caspar, either. "He's very protective of me, and the translator malfunction has affected him, too. He can't understand us."

She reaches across Viatorus to smooth out the braviary's neck feathers. That, along with the mage's sheepish demeanor, keep the bird from getting agitated again. Determining that Adia's friend is not a threat, he returns his watchful gaze to Caspar. And that other guy, the one who came with Adia's friend. What's his deal?

His half-laugh is met with a sympathetic smile. "Aside from this? I'm good, too." She looks over at Caspar briefly, her eyes shining softly. "More than good. I meant to get in touch with you. Sorry for sounding like a broken record about it. I figured you'd want to recover after Halloween, and, um... I was a little distracted."

Caspar, who is watching his girl, grins unconsciously at this, but says nothing. His demeanor, despite his crossed arms, is surprisingly relaxed. Like Bucky, he's determined that Viatorus isn't worth being suspicious about.

"I didn't see you and Runa at the holiday party, either," she continues with obvious regret. "Caspar met your sister, though. I have presents for you, but I can drop those off at your office. Oh!" She takes a moment to pull an envelope out of her messenger bag. It's addressed to Oraskis. "This is for your cousin. Do you mind giving it to him?"

The moment she tells him not to stare, he jumps a little in his seat and his head swivels away. Viatorus does love animals but that doesn't mean he wants to test their patience, or their sharp claws. It's easier not to focus on the beautiful bird creature as Adia continues.

The envelope surprises him, but he takes it and blinks at the name on it. Then his eyebrows twist and he smiles fondly at it before looking at Adia with a nod. "I will make sure he gets it."

"It's fine that you were busy. Really, it is. You are right, I did need to recover after-" He hesitates and switches back to the more comfortably Gaelic word, "Samhain." Then just as quickly he continues, "The nightmare. I… I was ill afterwards. I didn't get the chance to visit friends before-" Again he switches to say, "Yule." He fidgets and switches back to Greek. "I was at the festival, but I was still very tired. I was happy to watch."

"Besides." Viatorus looks to Caspar, fidgets and then smiles back at Adia. "You two must have had a lot of catching up to do."

"Thank you. I wasn't sure when I'd get the opportunity to speak with him again in person." His accidental vision probably wouldn't be considered noteworthy by Durant standards, but she'd award him with another badge if she could. A letter expressing her gratitude will have to do.

She doesn't miss his switch to other names for the holidays, but as she's heard of them before, it causes no confusion. More important is the mention of an illness, and her brows furrow with worry. "Oh, no. I'm sorry to hear that you were sick. Was it from the Nightmare? You seemed so..." She trails off, struggling to find the right words. "Calm and confident back there."

Thinking back on that moment brings a small amount of tension into her frame, a restless nervousness as she tucks away her pen and notebook. There's more she'd like to talk about regarding the Nightmare. But then Viatorus glances at Caspar and makes his comment, and as innocent as it is, she can't help but laugh. "Um, yeah." She catches Caspar's eye and grins. "You could say that."

Is that a blush on the Cylon's face? He gives a low, amused chuckle in return.

"I mean, we've been busy with so much in general," she continues. "And I..." she sighs and then sits up a little in determination. "The Nightmare changed some things for me. Not in a bad way, but I'd like to talk to you about it sometime." Her lower lip pulls down into a small pout and she adds, "I tried talking to Micolash about it, and, um... that didn't go so well."

Calm and confident? Viatorus straightens and smooths down the creases in his shirt in a small, slow motion. That is a very flattering compliment and he's not sure how to deal with it at first. He laughs awkwardly. "Th-Thank you. Um. I-It wasn't the Nightmare. No. Not... Not really. Not really..." His pride fades as he remembers. He fidgets with the hem of his jacket. "I-I was just... just tired after the Nightmare. That's all." He reasserts his smile to reassure her.

Completely oblivious to any eye-wagging innuendo, Viatorus smiles pleasantly between Caspar and Adia. They're smiling at each other, Adia's laughing, and Viatorus feels a little pleased with himself for helping make them both a bit happier.

What she says next catches him out. The Nightmare meant a lot to everyone involved, so it's little wonder that Adia was affected too. No, what surprises him is being asked to talk to her about it instead of Micolash. Micolash, whose very mind is so connected to the dreaming that Viatorus sometimes wonders whether or not he's in the waking. Micolash who is so knowledgeable on this subject that he set up a school to pass on his teachings. He is being asking to talk to her instead of Micolash? Surely the older scholar would have far more insight than him. Especially in regards to the Nightmare. It makes him wonder what on Earth would be enough to put Adia off of trying to consult someone vastly more knowledgeable than himself. Of course, prying would be rude, so he doesn't.

Realising that he's simply staring at her, Viatorus shakes himself out of his surprise and nods. "Oh! Yes! Of course. I'd be happy to help however I can..." Hesitantly he adds, "I... I don't think I'll know as much as Micolash about what happened, though. He... He has far more experience with that kind of dreaming, a-and he has ways of explaining it that I won't."

Tired is not the same as ill, and she worries her lip a little as he stumbles through his reassurances. But she has no reason to doubt him, or pry, and he seems fine now, so she's content with letting the matter drop.

His answer to her request makes her sigh a little, though not at him. "I've already spoken with him, and I think I'm going to get as much information from him as I can," she explains. "I know it was his Nightmare, but when he told me about what I saw --"

"He pushed her too far and she got mad," Caspar interjects.

Adia looks up at him. "I did not get mad."

"She looked like she was going to grab the bars of his cage and give him a good shake," he insists in a curious mixture of pride and concern. "I had to walk her away." Adia frowns at him, but he only shrugs, his look back at her kind but not apologetic. He's only being honest.

With another sigh, she fusses with the clip of her messenger bag, not quite meeting her friend's eyes. "I saw something in the Nightmare," she admits. "The Brain of Mensis. When I learned about its origins, I... I didn't take the news very well. I think I'd much rather talk to you about this. Besides, I... I think you know enough to help me. You're very good at what you do, too."

Edited (typos!!! >:() 2018-01-30 23:12 (UTC)

Viatorus' pre-emptively apologetic expression is soon turning into one of concern as Adia explains what happened and Caspar adds what she is reluctant to. He glances to the cylon to see if he's being honest, and is a little disappointed to see that he is. That… does not sound good. Adia is such a gentle person. Whatever made her mad enough to show it must have been quite bad. He finds himself simultaneously worried about Adia and Micolash. He hopes the other scholar is all right…

"I don't think he's told me about the Brain of Mensis before," he says quietly, switching to English without realising. Though still troubled, he manages a smile for her and continues in Greek. "I'll try my best to help you. Tell me when you're free and we'll arrange something."

She nods a little, her gaze downturned. Just as she had struggled with her anger when talking to Viatorus about her lowercase-n nightmare, so she struggles now. The result is a wave of guilt over her mixed feelings towards the caged scholar. "I'm frustrated," she admits quietly. "I don't blame him for what happened at the Halloween Party, but..."

Trailing off, she shakes her head and forces a smile back on her face. "We can talk about that later. Can we meet as soon as the Nexus translator is running again?" Her smile turns genuine. "My thoughts are confusing enough. Although your... Ancient Greek? It's very good."

Caspar keeps an eye on Adia while she speaks. There's some tension in his frame; he'd like to go over and comfort her, but that damn bird's going to get all worked up again. "What other languages can you speak?" he asks Viatorus instead, his gaze curious and sharp.

It's not hard to tell how conflicted she is, or how much she's struggling with all of this. Which makes it that much easier to put aside when she postpones the conversation. He smiles encouragingly and nods. "That sounds good. A-And thank you. I don't get to practice it often these days."

Caspar speaks up and Viatorus jumps a little as he looks to the other man. Again he switches to English. Listing out languages is confusing enough without doing it in a dead language. "Oh, um. English, of course. That's my first language. German and French, my mother and father's languages. Latin and Ancient Greek." He nods and folds his hands. Then suddenly he jumps again. "Oh! And Azerothian Common. I speak a bit of that. Harrowheart has been teaching me and I've been teaching him German. It's fascinating to hear another world's language, it really is."

Clearing his throat to calm himself, he looks between them both. "What about the two of you?"

"What do you use it for?" she asks. "The Greek, I mean. Religious purposes?" Now that the conversation is fully on languages, she seems far more relaxed, listening to her friend's answer curiously. "That's so many," she says, impressed. "I only speak Caprican and Leonese. It's like French, I've been told. Caspar knows way more than me, but it's easy for him to pick up additional languages."

"My brain is wired for it," Caspar says with a modest shrug. "I know Caprican and Leonese, Libran, some Tauron, and Binary. And I suppose Common, too. Harrowheart gave me a lesson a little earlier."

"Reading, mostly," he says. "Religious and philosophical reading. When I visit my Greek relatives they don't like to speak English so they put up with my Ancient Greek. Most of the religious ceremonies are done in Ancient Greek too." With a sheepish smile and a shrug he adds, "It's a little strange to hear it being spoken so normally."

Viatorus' eyebrows lift when he looks at Caspar. "That's impressive! They're all from different worlds, aren't they? Even Common," he says with a smile. "Is there a reason you know so many languages? Is it for work, o-or do you just like them?"

His sheepish smile is returned with one of her own. "It's weird to know that's what people are hearing when we speak. I always assumed Caprican was like English. Which... I guess that's a weirder assumption..." She backtracks to his earlier answer and adds, "It sounds like you have relatives all over... Europe? Do you have any elsewhere?" She likes learning about languages, but combine that with Earth geography and she's riveted.

"Different colonies," Caspar corrects absently. "Except Common. And binary is how almost all computers communicate." Which is why the mage's next question leaves the Cylon looking at him in confusion. Did this kid already forget what it means to be a biological robot?

His bemused frown rapidly pulls into a smirk. "Yeah, you could say it's for work, It was my job to infiltrate the Colonies, kinda helps to become rapidly fluent in any human language. Or maybe it's a side effect of, y'know, being a robot."

"Caspar. He was only making conversation."

Adia's tone is gentle, only the faintest hint of reproach, but it's enough to cause Caspar to blush and drop his gaze. He hadn't meant to get carried away like that. Dammit. "Sorry... I, uh. I learn them whether I want to or not, if I'm exposed to one long enough."

"I have distant cousins somewhere in South Africa, and some in Egypt, and I have one relative in Nepal too." After a bit more thought he can't recall anyone anywhere else so he nods. "But like you said, most of us are in Europe."

Despite the correction Viatorus smiles as Caspar talks. There's a twitch of his brow as one word unfamiliar word appears, a sad tilt of his brow when Caspar mentions 'infiltrating', and then his expression becomes completely apologetic and remorseful with the mention of another unfamiliar word and that tone. Even though he doesn't fully understand what's being said he can make an educated guess, and it's clear he's said something stupid.

Enthusiasm gone, he hopes that his cheeks aren't as red as they feel. He goes to say something but when his throat is too dry to make any noise he has to clear it before he tries again. "That's... That's still impressive," he says softly.

It's like watching a scolded puppy, and he'd be less bothered by it if it didn't remind him so damn much of how Adia reacts when she think she's offended someone. This time his girlfriend doesn't need to remind him to keep his tongue in check; he clears his throat and offers the mage what he hopes is a reassuring smile.

"Your list is more impressive." What with having a human brain, but he keeps that to himself. "How's your Common coming along? It's the weirdest damn language, not anything like the others I already know."

"I got about as far as pronouns and a few verbs," Adia adds, her expression clearing. It had bothered her to see Viatorus take Caspar's sarcastic tone to heart, but her boyfriend is making amends, so hopefully her friend's spirits will lift accordingly.

Viatorus can tell a consolation compliment when he hears one, but he gives Caspar a flickering smile all the same. He takes a deep breath to clear his thoughts before he replies.

"It's coming along a little slowly. The other languages I know share more with each other than Common does. It sounds like the Nordic languages of my world and I don't know any of them. English or German might be closest, but even they aren't very similar. At least German, French and English take a lot of their structure from Greek and Latin. Knowing one makes it easier to know the others. I think I can hold a basic conversation but Harrowheart has been teaching me for a while now, when we both get a chance."

"Nice to know it's an outlier among Earth languages, too," Caspar replies. "It's the same for us, all the colonial languages have things in common with one another. It's a good thing for Harrowheart that the Nexus translator normally works."

"Maybe Caspar can sit in on your lessons," Adia suggests brightly. Caspar gives her a look, and she grins at him with exaggerated innocence. He snorts lightly before returning his attention to the mage.

"So how'd you and he become friends? Chance meeting?"

Viatorus' smile flickers wider at the mention of Caspar joining in lessons. "I don't think Isidor would know what to do with being the second fastest student."

Caspar's question takes him by surprise. He blinks at them both and his eyes slide off into the distance as he thinks back. Now that he recalls their first few meetings it's striking to think how far they'd come.

His cheeks flush ever so slightly. "Oh. Well. We met in the Nexus wh-when Isidor and I were meeting new people. He and Isidor got into an argument, actually. He and I ended up meeting afterwards so that he could... make amends." He rubs his knuckles and laughs breathlessly. "Not a good start, I know. B-But then he, Steve and I ended up swapping bodies for a while. To be perfectly honest that didn't end all that well either... but the three of us have been good friends ever since."

That gets a real laugh out of Caspar. "I probably shouldn't, then. I wouldn't want to get on your sister's bad side." Although so far as humans go, he respects her and her priorities a great deal. Maybe participating in lessons wouldn't be so bad with Isidor there to keep things on track.

Adia sits up a little when Viatorus talks about how he met Harrowheart. It's not a story she's heard before, and she's surprised with herself that she never asked, but she isn't one to question friendships, no matter how odd the couple. She winces a little when he talks about their disastrous first encounter, but Caspar laughs again -- more of a chuckle this time. He can easily imagine the earthy death knight failing to get along with either mage. How they managed to overcome their differences, that's the part of the story that holds his attention the most.

"Well, I'm glad you're all friends now. Especially Harrowheart and Isidor, if that's how they got along the first time." Adia looks a little relieved. It's nice to know that some people can get along in the Nexus.

Caspar, meanwhile, seems hung up on the whole body swapping incident. "That was one of those Nexus curses?" He frowns uncomfortably. "I suppose I should be grateful that it's only a translator malfunction this time..."

Adia might look relieved but Viatorus can't help but look uncertain. He fidgets and admits quietly, "Well, they still don't always get along, but at least they fight less now."

"Oh, well." Viatorus thinks back to it, making sure he's remembers his facts right before he explains. "It was, sort of. Dr. Hill was trying to help people foster empathy. I think it worked rather well, but I did raise the issue of consent with him afterwards. I know that formality isn't really his way, a-and I don't think he understood how that might have overshadowed his intentions. Hopefully next time he'll have a few forms prepared if he does anything like that again."

"Oh, but--" she starts to say before clamping her mouth shut so hard that her teeth clack. She was not going to mention the crush, but it occurs to her that this might be a front Harrowheart keeps up for Viatorus' benefit. And so, she struggles in the silence, trying to come up with a way to finish her thought that doesn't sound suspicious.

Thankfully, Caspar unintentionally takes point. "I can't blame her for that," he interjects. "All that hands-on joshing and attitude. Does he roll his eyes every time you make him conjugate a verb?"

"Caspar," Adia says with a bone-weary patience, but before she can defend Harrowheart's honor, or point out that her beloved has an attitude of his own, Viatorus explains Doctor Hill's role in the bodyswap curse. That's actually old news to both of them. It's what he says at the end that shocks them both into silence.

The Cylon raises an eyebrow. "You think a man who swapped people's bodies is going to have consent forms next time?"

Adia worries her lower lip a little. "Viatorus," she says, her tone far more gentle. "I've heard a lot about Doctor Hill. I think that's a little optimistic to assume that he'll be more respectful of others in the future."

Edited 2018-02-04 15:33 (UTC)

"No..." Viatorus answers bemusedly. Thoughts on Harrowheart rolling his eyes at other people are soon forgotten in the face of their surprise.

Caspar's question gets a small frown of disapproval, but it's Adia's comment that surprises him the most. Surely she should understand trying to educate someone to get them to get along with people better.

"Have you met him?" He asks Adia a little more sharply than he means to. With his soft voice and anxious mannerisms it doesn't compare to his sister, thankfully, but he still looks self-conscious the moment he asks. Quietly he continues, "It's not right to condemn someone for a mistake like that. Not without trying to teach them, not without trying to make them understand and give them a chance to improve, to make amends. We all come from different places and understand the world in different ways. If we need to take the time to teach each other and learn from each other, shouldn't we be happy to? Isn't that part of being in the Nexus?"

"No," she admits, her gaze dropping at his sharp tone and continuing to hold there while he speaks, mouth turning into a guilty frown. It's true, she hasn't met Doctor Hill to judge his intentions for herself. And if it were nearly anyone else, she'd be giving the same exact lecture as her friend. "But..."

But it's not just the body swap, or the lack of obtaining consent, or the obvious ire that Isidor has for the doctor. It's Josh. Doctor Hill was his psychiatrist, and yet the one time they spoke of it, her friend looked so haunted, so scared, that she never mentioned it again. If Doctor Hill can put that kind of fear into her friend, then what sort of a person is he?

Is he even a person at all?

She doesn't get a chance to vocalize her concerns, because Caspar suddenly speaks up, his expression hard. "You ever hear the phrase 'Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me?' Swapping people's bodies isn't a mistake. Someone with that kind of power using it as a kind of trust exercise isn't someone I want my girl around. You got it? You go ahead and give out your second chance, don't drag her into it."

"He's not wrong," Adia says, giving Caspar a look. He crosses his arms, but doesn't back down, and she doesn't know whether to be grateful that he's looking out for her, or frustrated that he's generating conflict. "I think..." She looks back at Viatorus and sighs. "I think maybe we should get going. Send me a text when you can see me at your office, okay?"

She hesitates and he hangs on that unfinished sentence with baited breath. Is she going to explain her fears so that he can resolve them? Or maybe the pause is her realising, is her understanding...

Instead Caspar speaks and his expression, his tone, his harsh words hit Viatorus like a slap to the face. He ducks his gaze to avoid their eyes meeting, as if it might hide his reddening cheeks. A voice in his head wants to say that Dr. Hill is different, he might not be human but he's still a person, he can still learn if they only give him the chance... Words that remain unspoken as he bites the inside of his lip to stop himself from saying anything else. He simply waits until Caspar has finished chastising him.

Only when Adia speaks up again does he move. He nods and glances so quickly at her that it's hard to spot what passes for a smile flickering across his face. Then he gets to his feet, nods to them both and mumbles a quiet, "Very nice to meet you."

He hurries off and Lyall gives them both an exceptionally suspicious look before following the scholar.

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Language LOL: Translator Malfunction

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